Goals and Highlights: Antwerp 1-0 Olympiacos in Europa League

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Until next time.

Knockout round play-off teams confirmed!

Antwerp says goodbye to the UEFA Europa League with a home win.

The match ends:

Antwerp 1-0 Olympiacos

Pape Abou Cissé is shown the yellow card.

Attempt saved. Alhassan Yusuf right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. 

Corner kick for Antwerp.
 

Attempt blocked. Pape Abou Cissé left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.

Corner kick for Olympiacos.
 

Substitution Antwerp:

Alhassan Yusuf replaces Michel Balikwisha.

Attempt missed. Youssef El-Arabi with an attempt from the centre of the box misses to the left.

Corner kick for Olympiacos.

Offside, Antwerp.

Offside, Olympiacos.

Attempt missed. Michel Balikwisha header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left.

Offside, Antwerp.

Corner kick for Olympiacos.

Corner kick for Antwerp.

Substitution Antwerp:

Mbwana Samatta replaces Benson Manuel.

Michael Frey replaces Johannes Eggestein.

Attempt saved. Benson Manuel left footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner.

Attempt saved. Benson Manuel right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top left corner.

Corner kick for Antwerp.

Substitution Olympiacos:

Thanasis Androutsos replaces Kenny Lala.

Attempt saved. Marios Vrousai left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.

Attempt saved. Michel Balikwisha right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner.

Corner kick for Antwerp.

Substitution Olympiacos:

Marios Vrousai replaces Henry Onyekuru.

Substitution Antwerp:

Robbe Quirynen replaces Ritchie De Laet.

Björn Engels replaces Dorian Dessoleil.

Attempt saved. Yann M'Vila right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. 

Offside, Antwerp.

Corner kick for Antwerp.

Substitution Olympiacos:

Youssef El-Arabi replaces Tiquinho Soares.

Giorgos Masouras replaces Rony Lopes.

Aguibou Camara replaces Andreas Bouchalakis.

The referee whistles and the second half starts!

Antwerp takes advantage of the break:

The first half ends:

Antwerp 1-0 Olympiacos

Attempt missed. Yann M'Vila right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left

Tiquinho Soares is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.

Benson Manuel left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left.

Attempt missed. Jelle Bataille right footed shot from the left side of the box.

Attempt missed. Andreas Bouchalakis left footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.

Offside, Antwerp.

Attempt missed. Rony Lopes left footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. 

Attempt saved. Andreas Bouchalakis left footed shot from outside the box is saved.

Attempt saved. Benson Manuel left footed shot from outside the box is saved.

Attempt saved. Benson Manuel right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved.

Yann M'Vila left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal.

Corner kick for Antwerp.

Corner kick for Antwerp.

Pieter Gerkens header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.

Corner kick for Antwerp.

Attempt missed. Sokratis Papastathopoulos header from very close range is too high.

 

New corner kick for Olympiacos.

Corner kick for Olympiacos.

Goal! Antwerp

Michel Balikwisha right footed shot from the left side of the box to the top right corner.

Start the first half!

All set ladies and gentlemen after the players have finished warming up and are about to return to the field of play.

In a few minutes the initial whistle will be given.

The last day of the UEFA Europa League group stage will take place today, when Greek Olympiacos travel to Belgium, where they will face Antwerp at the Bosuilstadion.

Olympiacos are guaranteed their place in the next round as they are four points clear of Fenerbahce, who are third in Group D, but their aim is to overtake Frankfurt in first place, while Antwerp is in the background. with only two points in the competition so far and is eliminated.

The Bosuilstadion is ready and in optimal condition to host this UEFA Europa League match between Antwerp and Olympiacos, it will be the third game in 7 days to be played at this venue.

De Bosuil is klaar voor 3⃣ thuiswedstrijden in 7⃣ dagen tijd! ✅🏟#RAFC #OneRedFamily pic.twitter.com/beCOGOJxVJ

— Royal Antwerp FC (@official_rafc) December 9, 2021

Tonight the Greek team will be wearing their away uniform shown below, it seems like a nice combination to me and it looks very classy.

This is Olympiacos' starting eleven for tonight's game:

Η ενδεκάδα της ομάδας μας για το ματς κόντρα στην Αντβέρπ! / Our line-up for today’s match against @official_rafc! 🔴⚪️#Olympiacos #UEL #ANTOLY #Football #FootballGame #LineUp pic.twitter.com/eG7MBzHq1r

— Olympiacos FC (46🏆) (@olympiacosfc) December 9, 2021

This is Antwerp's starting lineup for tonight's game:

Sokratis Papastathopoulos left the pitch in the 25th minute last time in the UEFA Europa League, but he was fit enough for a bench spot last weekend and could return to the starting lineup tonight.

After a good win against Fenerbahce, Coach Martins may choose to name the same starting 11, which will include Giorgos Masouras, Aguibou Camara, Henry Onyekuru and Youssef El Arabi as the main attacking threats.

Konstantinos Fortounis is the only injury absent from the team as he continues to recover from a prolonged cruciate ligament injury that has prevented him from being active all season.

Το φινάλε των ομίλων του @EuropaLeague μας περιμένει! ΠΑΜΕ ΘΡΥΛΕ! / The grand finale of the #UEL group stage awaits us! LET’S GO! 🔴⚪️✊🏻#Olympiacos #ANTOLY #WeKeepOnDreaming pic.twitter.com/zAdeS1C9zr

— Olympiacos FC (46🏆) (@olympiacosfc) December 9, 2021

Midfielder Radja Nainggolan was forced out of the game after just seven minutes against Oostende, but immediately returned to training with the team a week later when they faced Beerschot, and is expected to start today alongside Birger Verstraete and Pierre. Dwomoh.

Forward Michael Frey has scored an impressive 15 goals in 17 games in the Belgian Pro League, but he has failed to transfer that form to the UEFA Europa League, with one game remaining in this competition.

Antwerp has concerns about injury before the game, with Bruny Nsimba and Sander Coopman yet to appear this season, while Aurelio Buta has been absent since mid-October with a muscle injury.

#UEL MATCHDAY! 💪
🆚 Olympiacos FC
🏟️ Bosuilstadion
⏰ 18:45
📺 Play 4#RAFC #ANTOLY #COYR🔴⚪ #OneRedFamily pic.twitter.com/FACHnXhUOx

— Royal Antwerp FC (@official_rafc) December 9, 2021

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If you want to watch the game Antwerp vs Olympiacos live on TV, your option is: TUDNxtra.

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This is the start time of the game Antwerp vs Olympiacos on December 9^th, 2021 in several countries:

Argentina: 2:45 PM in STAR+

Bolivia: 1:45 PM in STAR+

Brazil: 3:45 PM in STAR+

Chile: 2:45 PM in STAR+

Colombia: 12:45 PM in STAR+

Ecuador: 12:45 PM in STAR+

USA (ET): 1:45 PM in TUDNxtra / Paramount+

Spain: 6:45 PM in Movistar+

Mexico: 11:45 AM in STAR+

Paraguay: 2:45 PM in STAR+

Peru: 12:45 PM in STAR+

Uruguay: 2:45 PM in STAR+

Venezuela: 1:45 PM in STAR+

The only precedent between the two teams is the match they played on Matchday 1 of the Group Stage, in this edition of the UEFA Europa League, a match that Olympiacos won 2-1 at the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium, on September 16.

Youssef El-Arabi is a Moroccan footballer who plays as a center forward or midfielder.

Although born in France, he has dual citizenship and has been international with the Moroccan soccer team, with which he debuted on September 5, 2010.

Radja Nainggolan is a Belgian footballer with an Indonesian father and a Belgian mother. He plays as a midfielder and is Antwerp's player to watch.

He has been international with the Belgium soccer team on different occasions and categories. On May 21, 2018, after not being called up by Roberto Martínez for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, he announced his retirement from the national team.

Antwerp:

Butez; De Laet, Dessoleil, Almeida; Vines; Verstraete, Nainggolan, Dwomoh; Samatta, Frey, Fischer.

Coach: Brian Priske.

 

Olympiacos:

Vaclik; Reabciuk, Cisse, Sokratis, Lala; Mohamed Mady Camara, M'Vila; Onyekuru, Aguibou Camara, Masouras; Arabi.

Coach: Pedro Martins.

Referee: Marco Di Bello ITA

Assistant Referee 1: Daniele Bindoni ITA

Assistant referee 2: Alberto Tegoni ITA

Fourth official: Rosario Abisso ITA

VAR: Michael Fabbri ITA

VAR Assistant: Fabio Maresca ITA

Olympiacos have won five of their last six matches in all competitions, and remain undefeated in the Greek Super League this season, currently six points clear at the top.
The team comes into this game after a 3-1 league win at the weekend, having rallied against OFI Crete.

Pedro Martins's men will want to finish first in Group D with a victory in this match. If Frankfurt loses against Fenerbahce and Olympiacos scores all three points in Belgium, then the Greek team will finish first, remembering that they already beat Antwerp on the first Matchday of the group stage.

The first meeting between these two teams in this UEFA Europa League came in September, when Oleg Reabciuk gave the late victory to Olympiacos, who won 2-1 in Piraeus.

Τελευταία προπόνηση της ομάδας μας πριν το ματς με την Αντβέρπ! / Last training session ahead of our match vs @official_rafc!#Olympiacos #UEL #ANTOLY #Football #Training pic.twitter.com/3e9pyXZBho

— Olympiacos FC (46🏆) (@olympiacosfc) December 8, 2021

Antwerp is going strong in the Belgian Pro League, currently ranking second and just four points behind league leader Union St Gilloise, but they haven't been able to replicate their good run in Europe this season.

Brian Priske's team achieved a 2-2 draw in their last game in Group D against the Frankfurt toppers, in a match that ended dramatically as the Belgian team was about to win, until Goncalo Paciencia tied in the minute 94. That late Frankfurt goal means Antwerp have conceded at least two goals in four of their five group stage games, preventing them from progressing in the UEFA Europa League.

Despite having nothing to play for in the Europa League, Antwerp is entering this game after two straight Pro League victories, and they will want to use this latest group game to continue their momentum.

Focus 🔛 Olympiacos! 🇬🇷#RAFC #UEL #OneRedFamily pic.twitter.com/n0NkHTzmJH

— Royal Antwerp FC (@official_rafc) December 8, 2021

The Bosuilstadion is a soccer stadium located in Antwerp, Belgium. It was inaugurated on November 1, 1923 and has a capacity for 16,649 spectators, being the stadium in which Royal Antwerp FC plays its matches, it is located in the district of Deurne.

A large number of friendly matches for the Belgian national team have been played at the Bosuilstadion, most of them against the Netherlands. However, the stadium has not hosted a Belgium game since 1988 when they faced Brazil.

My name is Alex CR and I’ll be your host for this game: Antwerp vs Olympiacos. We will provide you with pre-game analysis, score updates, and news as it happens live here on VAVEL.

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