Greek Tragedy? Not For Arsenal’s Players!

Olympiacos? We've Seen This Greek Tragedy Before

Thirteen meetings in sixteen years. You'd think by now Olympiacos would just send us a postcard instead of actually turning up. But no, here they were again, dragging their red-and-white shirts to the Emirates for another dose of déjà vu.

And what happened? The inevitable. Arsenal rolled out the Champions League anthem for the first time this season, rotated half the squad, and still made enough chances to stuff Piraeus like a gyro. In the end, a 2-0 win looked neat and tidy, but it should have been three, four, maybe even five.

Viktor the Viking

Gabriel Martinelli may have been the scorer, but the goal belonged to Viktor Gyökeres. Our Nordic battering ram chased down an Odegaard through ball, shoved aside two defenders like they were pesky IKEA stools, then bulldozed into the box. His shot smacked off the post, and Martinelli gleefully tapped in like the younger sibling who gets credit for finishing the LEGO set someone else built.

That's three for the season now for Gabi, who's suddenly remembered how to be in the right place at the right time.

Raya of Light

Up the other end, David Raya did his best impression of a flying squirrel, launching himself full stretch to claw away a Daniel Podence volley that had "highlight reel" written all over it. Say what you want about his distribution, but sometimes goalkeeping is still about, you know, saving shots.

Without him, the old "Olympiacos curse" might have reared its ugly head again. Instead, he kept things cleaner than Arteta's trainers on media day.

Trossard Tries, Fails, Repeats

Leandro Trossard had more chances than a reality TV contestant but managed to squander them all. Volley here, half-volley there, wide, over, blocked, cleared off the line—you name it. The Belgian worked harder than a substitute teacher with Year 9 on a Friday afternoon, but the goal just wouldn't come.

Saka Says Goodnight

And so, as is tradition, Bukayo Saka strolled off the bench to tidy up. Odegaard (because of course it was Odegaard) slipped him in during injury time, and Saka nutmegged the keeper to make it 2-0. Points safe, stadium happy, Greeks packing their bags.

Final Whistle Thoughts

• Gyökeres is basically a one-man battering ram in a kit.
• Martinelli owes him dinner, at the very least.
• Raya can fly, confirmed.
• Trossard should maybe start aiming lower. Much lower.
• Saka remains inevitable.

Olympiacos may have haunted us in the past, but tonight they were more like polite guests. They showed up, handed us three points, and left quietly.

Next up: West Ham. Expect pyrotechnics, misplaced Declan Rice chants, and hopefully a cleaner finish to match our dominance.