Arsenal still has visions of Champions League knockout stage
Arsenal is on the brink of a Champions League Round of 16 spot, and the stakes couldn't be any higher.
Needing a win by at least two goals against Olympiacos, the Gunners head into Greece with ambitions of finishing second in Group F. However, a 3-2 win or more would also see Arsenal progress. Bayern Munich has already locked up the top spot in the group.
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For Arsenal winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, the challenge Olympiacos presents is but one test; managing the game properly is the other.
"If we can get that first goal we will really put them under pressure and we can push on and hopefully get another one," he told Arsenal's official website. "If they manage to score we are not out of it by any stretch of the imagination, we will just have to score a few more. We will see how the game goes but we need to defend first and foremost - keeping a clean sheet is the first task.
"We have got players in our side that can go and score goals and we will be focused on doing that. Olympiacos came to the Emirates and played really well on the night and showed us what a threat they can be."
Should Arsenal fail on the day, the Gunners would be eliminated from the Champions League knockout stages for the first time since the 1999-2000 season. Oxlade-Chamberlain said Olympiacos will be a tough challenge, but said he and his teammates believe the job can be done on the day.
"We have played at Olympiacos a number of times so it is a tough place to go and their fans can create a real buzzy atmosphere," Oxlade-Chamberlain said. "It can be a bit intimidating but we have to feed off of that and go there and get two goals, defend well and get the result.
"Going into that game with nothing to lose, the boss uses the term: 'playing without the handbrake on.' I think that is when we play our best stuff and if we do that we give ourselves the best chance."
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