Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has come under ferocious attack from pundits and punters alike after Arsenal slumped to one of the worst defeats of his managerial reign.
A 3-2 loss to Olympiakos has left the club’s Champions League hopes hanging by a thread: it is the first time that the club have lost their opening two games in the tournament, and means they will almost certainly need to beat Bayern Munich twice to progress.
The game saw David Ospina – playing instead of the rested Petr Cech – commit a terrible mistake, the goalkeeper dropping a routine corner over the line to hand Olympiakos a 2-1 lead on the night.
A still of the goal appears to show the ball crossed the line
It was the performance of Ospina and decision not to field Cech which drew the most scathing responses from Wenger’s critics, with former Arsenal striker Ian Wright leading the charge with his analysis on BT Sport.
“It’s a massive disappointment. The defensive errors – the little mistakes – are just so poor, ridiculous really,” he said. “I just feel sorry for the fans.
“I’m really confused by Arsene Wenger’s choice of putting [Ospina] in goal. He shows a lot of faith in some of these Arsenal players and they’ve let him down a few times.
Ian Wright was angry at Arsenal’s display
“I was worried about Ospina at the start: the back two guys are not confident enough as it is anyway. There’s not enough aerial supremacy there. The goalkeeper looked like he was just trying to second guess something.
“This was a must win game so how can you put Ospina in goal, honestly? You have to question the manager.
“Ospina’s was a big mistake. Cech has experience, Arsenal have to win this game – so it’s a big mistake from the manager.”
Arsene Wenger has come under fire over his decision to play David Ospina
Another former Arsenal player, Martin Keown, fears the club’s European dream has been effectively killed off after just two matches and ranked it as the worst Champions League night in the club’s history.
“It’s looking like it’s too much for Arsenal to qualify,” he said, also on BT Sport. “The Ospina mistake and conceding the third goal like they did is a disaster. I can’t remember a more disappointing European result for Arsenal.”
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