Olympiacos coach Jose Luis Mendilibar has expressed complete belief in his team to leave a strong impression in the Champions League after their valiant performance against Arsenal that came in vain.
The Piraeus giants put up a fight but they ultimately fell victim to the English giants’ quality as they fell 2-0 in London on Thursday night in the competition’s second matchday, leaving the Greek club on one point earned from their first two clashes.
Despite losing, Mendilibar only had positive things to say both about his own side as well as his opponents, who he described as “one of the best teams” in the world.
“The result is due to the fact that they are a very good team, a better team. Our game was respectable, we fought and showed that we can look them in the eye,” the Olympiacos manager said to media post-match.
“We were very good, although I believe we can be even better and make it even more difficult for teams of this level.”
Mendilibar noted that their effort against Arsenal demonstrates they will not shy away from the further challenges in store, with their overall target still being to advance to the knockout rounds.
“I believe that since we showed that we can look our opponents in the eye, we certainly have other big opponents to face, we have many games ahead of us to show what we can do.”
Olympiacos has a few weeks to prepare before their next European assignment, travelling away to take on Spanish heavyweights FC Barcelona, and Konstantinos Tzolakis has already made their intentions clear.
“We’re going to Barcelona to do something big,” the keeper told media post-match.
“We know the quality of Barcelona, but we will fight for the best possible result.”
