Arsenal advanced despite a 1-0 loss at home to Olympiacos, progressing 3-2 on aggregate. The Gunners failed to fire but did enough to reach the last-eight. – By Madellene Kalunda
Arteta opted to recall Aubameyang after axing his captain for the north London derby win over Tottenham four days earlier following a breach in pre-match protocol.
But when the visitors re-emerged for the second half and upped the tempo and intensity, to overturn a two-goal deficit, within six minutes they’d crumbled.
But the skipper would pass up a number of opportunities to kill off the tie, with Youssef El-Arabi scoring in a third successive game against Arsenal to earn the Greek champions victory after 51 minutes on the night despite the dismissal of Ousseynou Ba.
Arsenal missed a number of chances throughout the game, with captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang wasting a number of opportunities, but the visitors’ hopes were ended when Ousseynou Ba was sent off for a second booking seven minutes from time.
It was a far from perfect display but more than enough to ensure that the Gunners remain in the hunt for a European trophy and the sought-after prize of a Champions League place that comes with it.
They will discover their quarter-final opponents when the draw is made in Switzerland at 12:00 GMT on Friday.
