It seems as if every time I see Arsenal playing recently, Olivier Giroud is on the scoresheet. The guy with the “meaty French forehead” as Arlo White loves to say has had an eye for the goal in recent games and when Arsenal needed a big win, Giroud provided that with his first ever hat trick and beat Olympiakos 3-0 to take Arsenal to the Champions League knockout stage for the 16th consecutive year.
Giroud but that forehead I mentioned into good use on his first goal. The header whipped into Olympiakos goalkeeper and while it looked like Roberto was able to save it, the ball trickled in off of his deflection.
Giroud's header sneaks in at the near post, but Arsenal still with some work to do. WATCH #UCLonFOX https://t.co/UFNp5DUmq9
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 9, 2015
Giroud’s second goal was the result of a great pass in the box by Joel Campbell. Giroud perfectly timed his run and got Arsenal into the clear to go to the knockout stage.
Joel Campbell and Giroud combine to give Arsenal a 2-0 lead at Olympiakos. WATCH: #UCLonFOX https://t.co/L1f7Hvs5TR
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 9, 2015
But even if Arsenal was clear of the knockout stage, they knew that if Olympiakos scored a goal of their own, they would be back in control. So after a handball by Omar Elabdellaoui, Giroud went up to the penalty spot and calmly got his hat trick and ensured Arsenal of a Round of 16 spot.
Giroud keeps his cool from the spot to complete his hat trick, and give Arsenal a 3-0 lead at Olympiakos. #UCLonFOX https://t.co/c5A2fIEgbe
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 9, 2015
So even though Arsenal should’ve been in 2nd in the first place, they sure got there in the toughest of ways. After losing to Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiakos to start out their Champions League campaign, they pulled out a huge 2-0 win over Bayern Munich. Then after a 5-1 loss to Bayern, Arsenal avenged their first loss with a win over Zagreb and needed at least a two goal win over Olympiakos. They did it and now await their Round of 16 opponent.
