Arsenal vs Olympiacos: Hits and Flops | UEFA Europa League 2019-20

A tough night for Gooners across the globe as Arsenal crash out of Europe at the hands of Olympiacos. A 2-1 defeat at the Emirates to the team from Athens settled the tie in favour of Olympiacos, as despite a wonderful bicycle goal from Aubameyang, the North London side failed to hold the lead for ten minutes with Youssef El-Arabi scoring in the 119th minute to take his team into the Round of 16.

One of the worst games of the season for Arsenal, Mikel Arteta and Co. had no answer to Olympiacos' deep defensive block as the Spaniard could not alter his tactics and get a result in 120 minutes of football. While it should've been a comfortable second leg for the Gunners in front of their fans, Arsenal now see themselves out of Europe, despite the fact that they had an away goal advantage coming into the second leg.

A game of drastic ups and downs, there have been performances right from the best to worst. So without further ado, let's take a closer look at who deserved to go through, and who did not.

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#4 Flop - Alexandre Lacazette

Alexander Lacazette had a disappointing outing

For someone who has had unreal backing from Mikel Arteta, Alex Lacazette has yet again dropped a stinker of a performance for Arsenal. In a game where the Gunners were crying out for goals, Alex Lacazette managed to have a total of zero shots on target.

In 105 minutes of football, Lacazette lost possession 7 times, followed by missing the best chance of the game for Arsenal. He had 33 touches of the ball, the least amongst Arsenal players. Moreover, the Frenchman won zero aerial and ground duels and completed an average of two passes every 10 minutes.

On the other hand, Gabriel Martinelli had 11 touches of the ball in his second-half cameo and it was his header which led to Aubameyang's equaliser, although it was unintentional. The Brazilian also attempted 2 shots in 15 minutes, as much as Lacazette did in 105.

It is crystal clear that Arteta has been giving Lacazette chance after chance to prove himself and get back on the scoring charts, but truth be told, Arteta's obsession with not playing Aubameyang as the central striker and refraining to use Martinelli until the second half of extra time has eventually cost his team a spot in the Round of 16.

#3 Hit - Abou Cissé

Abou Cisse opened the scoring for Olympiacos

This was arguably Olympiacos' greatest European night in history and Abou Cissé undoubtedly played the most important role out of the lot. After a 53rd minute goal which put Olympiacos in the lead, the Senegalese defender went on to showcase what would be the best performance of his career so far, especially against some of the top forwards in England.

With a grand total of 24 clearances, Cissé and Ba gave the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Lacazette and Nicolas Pepe a tough time, as Arsenal's front three failed to find a way to score until Aubameyang's 113th-minute bicycle kick. Abou Cissé won 4 out of 5 aerial duels and had a total of 75 touches, completing as many as 50 passes in 120 minutes; an impressive stat for a defender who's team did not see the ball much.

Alex Lacazette had no reply to Cissé's tight marking and his goal was certainly what gave Olympiacos a glimpse of hope and motivation to defeat Arsenal at the Emirates. Abou Cissé was the Man of the Match for me.

#2 Flop - Hector Bellerin

Hector Bellerin had a difficult game at right-back

Hector Bellerin is not the same player anymore. From someone who whizzed past opponents and often relied on his sheer pace to recover in tough situations, Bellerin now looks like someone who could never match the intensity of top competitions unless he puts in 150% of his time and dedication into it.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles was a sound option for Mikel Arteta in the right-back position, but since Hector Bellerin has come back, Maitland Niles has been dropped to the bench relentlessly whilst Arteta has either played Bellerin or Sokratis as RB. Last night, it was yet another disasterclass from the 24-year-old.

Unfortunately, he is yet to reach his full capacity as the ACL injury has done him severe harm. His resurgence has been good news for fans but Bellerin is not half the player he used to be, which might be a worry for Mikel Arteta, who will have to make a decision on the player's future at the club.

Bellerin had a terrible game today as the Spaniard failed to complete a single cross into the box, and lost possession 14 times, which is worrying for a right back. Although he had 50+ touches in the opposition's box, Bellerin completed zero dribbles in 84 minutes of game time which leads to more questions about his fitness, trickery and ability to reach the level he was at before the injury.

#1 Hit - Shkodran Mustafi

Shkodran Mustafi put in a world-class performance on the night

The fact that Arsenal lost the game by two goals to one would obviously overshadow Mustafi's world-class performance last night. The German defender was at his best, as he cleared whatever came his way and gave zero breathing space to the likes of El-Arabi and Valbuena. It did not come as a surprise to me that Arsenal conceded from a cross as soon as Mustafi left the pitch, because it was he who carried Arsenal's defence in the first place.

In 103 minutes of football, Shkodran Mustafi lost an aerial duel only once, winning six times out of seven. He also had the most interceptions with three and was definitely the reason why Arsenal did not concede 3 to 4 goals in the game.

Mustafi was replaced by Sokratis in the first half of extra time due to a thigh injury, and David Luiz, Granit Xhaka and Sokratis were the three players who could not manage to clear the cross from Masouras, which eventually led to the winner. Maybe Arsenal would not have conceded at all if Mustafi stayed on the pitch, because in a game where every player barring Nicolas Pepe struggled to create anything, it was Mustafi who came up with yet another impressive performance.