Arsenal Vs Olympiakos: Now Mikel Arteta management will be tested

Arsenal bombed out of the Europa League with a disastrous 2-1 defeat to Olympiakos. Now, Mikel Arteta’s management will be tested as he looks to lift his dejected players.

You did not have to look far to see how Arsenal’s disastrous defeat was impacting the players. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had slumped to the floor, his knees spread, fingers sprayed across his face. David Luiz looked up to the heavens. Bernd Leno was equally as distraught.

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If you had any doubts that the Europa League was not important to these players, these pictures told you a very different story. But it also provides peek into their mental state ahead of the final months of the season, one in which there is still plenty to play for.

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In his post-match press conference following the shock defeat, Mikel Arteta conceded that he and his players are ‘hurt’:

"“It hurts, big time <…> This is football and sometimes it is very cruel when the emotions are right here [raises hand high], then in another moment they’re somewhere else [lowers hand]. You have to able to handle that if you want to be in this industry so now it’s up to us and up to me to bring this place back in and move forward.”"

Defeats like this can rock squads. They have done previously and they will do again. For all of the advancements in analytics and statistical breakdowns, football is a game played between 22 individuals and two teams. The mental preparation and state matters, and Arsenal’s has been rocked.

Arteta himself conceded as much, admitting that his primary focus over the next few days is to lift the players and help them respond:

"“I just want to concentrate now on lifting those players and getting back the belief, and convince them that there is still a lot to play for, and move on. It’s part of this sport that a big disappointment can happen and it happened tonight. We have to learn and react as a team and as a club. I’m the first one, I have to lift them, it’s my job. That’s the first thing I have to do. First of all we have to digest it because it’s very, very painful tonight.”"

When Pep Guardiola’s assistant arrived in north London, very few doubted his coaching and tactical acumen. The stories the Manchester City players told of his work was enough to vindicate his coaching quality. But where he was not proven was in his management skills. Could he lead people? Could he manage them emotionally? Could he motivate, inspire, protect, encourage?

It is these personnel, management skills that Arteta will be now be tested on. How will he resurrect these dejected Arsenal players and prepare them for the season run-in that still features a high-pressure top-four race in which the Gunners cannot afford to drop many points to keep themselves in it.

Even without a Premier League match this weekend, Arteta and his players cannot afford a drop-off in performance level. They must respond without hesitation, and based on how they looked at full-time, that will not be easy. Arteta’s management will really be tested now.