How much are you affected by the fact that Olympiacos can qualify even by losing and that Arsenal has always qualified to the next round in the past ten years?
“It’s true that we have the chance to leave Arsenal out for the first time. We will fight until the end to achieve this. We never prepare in order to lose any match, in any competition, and we will not do it now.”
Despite the footballers that are not playing, Arsenal form a strong team. Had you the chance to lock someone in the locker room, would that be a player or the team’s coach?
“This is not my business and it’s not part of my job. I know that some Arsenal footballers are not playing and it does not concern me. We were also missing some players in London and we used players from the Academy and players participating in the UEFA Champions League for the first time, however we never stopped fighting. So why should Arsenal be any different than that?”
Is the team ready to cope with pleasant or unpleasant situations? Secondly, is the key to the match to stop Arsenal’s possession of the ball?
We are aware that Arsenal want to have possession of the ball and this is what they will try to do tomorrow. We will try to do the same too. We have planned the match and we will try to do the same. We know what the result can change many times. You have to be very well prepared tactically and also emotionally. I know really well that we are well prepared for this.”
Would you like to tell us whether you plan to field Botía given da Costa’s injury?
“We will assess da Costa’s condition tomorrow. I can tell you that they are both part of the squad, as are Siovas and Vouros. It’s true that we will make a final assessment about da Costa’s condition tomorrow.
Do you believe that Arsenal will be more pressed?
“When this group with Bayern, Arsenal and Dinamo was formed, I think that everyone know who the first two clubs in the group standings would be. It’s really beautiful that we will try to win the qualification tomorrow in front of our fans. We all know, however, that results are achieved on the pitch. We can agree nonetheless that clubs like Arsenal that rarely find themselves in this position and have usually qualified before the final matchday of the group stage, are more pressed in such situations. We are not pressed; we just feel obliged to fight and have the best possible display in front of our fans.”
Do you think that Arsenal underestimated you in London’s match?
“I understand your question, however I don’t agree, I don’t think that something like this happened. We are very satisfied with London’s result and we will try to do the same thing tomorrow. Before these matches, everyone knew who the two favourites were. But we managed to turn things around. Tomorrow, we will try to achieve something good and we will do this very modestly and with a lot of hard work.”
What would you like to say to the fans of Olympiacos, because UEFA are sending their best referee, and, most importantly, which is the feeling that can help you qualify to the round of 16?
“We understand that this is a really important match for us. We have the opportunity to win the qualification in front of our fans, with a slight advantage. These things are very beautiful. It’s important that UEFA too place so much importance in this match. What we can tell our fans is that we will do our best to qualify and that we will fight. The qualification is not that important to me, it’s important to the fans and the club and we will try to make it happen for everyone.”
Brown Ideye
What elements must Olympiacos have tomorrow in order to win?
“We know that we must win whereas our opponents know that they must score many goals. We must defend well and counter-attack in order to score because, if we do this, then it will mean that they will have to score more goals.”
Last year you had the opportunity to watch Arsenal. Do you think that they are weaker this year compared to last year?
“No, I would definitely not say this. They are not weak, they are always a great team. They face problems due to injuries, but they want to come here, win the match and qualify. We will try to do our best in order to qualify and make our fans in the stands happy.”
How will you feel if you manage to qualify?
“I am particularly happy and the team will do their best in order to qualify. Many people from England called me and said they hoped we would qualify. I am certain that will manage to qualify.”
First of all, do you believe that Arsenal underestimated Olympiacos in the first leg? And secondly, given that you played in the English championship, do you want to prove something tomorrow?
“I believe that people underestimated Olympiacos a bit in this group in the beginning, but we work hard. I don’t have anything to prove tomorrow. I play for Olympiacos; I respect this and want to focus on tomorrow’s match.”
Do you believe that this match is special? Do you feel like the fans support you?
“Everyone supports us here. I discussed about this with the coach. I recently took a walk with my family and people approached me and asked me to win this match. Everyone will be dressed in red-and-white and I believe that they will help us win this game.”
