Arsenal: 5 key players to keep Champions League alive vs Olympiakos

2. Alexandre Lacazette

Man oh man, did that goal feel good. As a fan, I felt like I had just had my own goal drought dispatched. Alexandre Lacazette‘s reaction was so genuine and so pure that I was literally on the brink of tears I was so happy for him. I don’t care if that sounds stupid.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

Now the danger becomes not having a setback. We know the confidence issues that Lacazette has, and it would not be a good thing to see him take a hit to that confidence and thus have to regroup and find his footing again.

He is going to be feeling a mix of that pressure, as well as the excitement of having the goal snide off his back. And as a truly elite striker, it’s far more likely that his finishing is back where he needs it to be to continue bulging the back of the net consistently.

Olympiakos is timed perfectly to be his return to the starting XI. It’s the kind of game that he can take by the scruff of the neck if he has the right support, and with the other guys I expect him to be surrounded by, he will have that support.

Finally, No. 1.