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Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger holds heated inquest with players after Champions League defeat to Olympiacos

The Gunners face an uphill task to qualify from their Champions League group

Thursday 01 October 2015 10:53 BST

The Frenchman was angered by his players' collective lack of desire (Getty Images)

Arsene Wenger has held a heated training ground inquest into his side's 3-2 defeat to Olympiakos in which he criticised his players' poor attitude and lack of passion.

The Arsenal manager, who witnessed a second successive Champions League group stage defeat on Tuesday night, is not known to aggressively dressing-down his charges after embarrassing performances but made an exception on this occasion, according to the Daily Mail.

During their customary post-match debreif at their London Colney base, a time in which players are usually encouraged to express the opinions and hold a healthy debate, Wenger instead excoriated his squad and demanded that they improve in the coming weeks.

Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

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1/11Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

David Ospina: 3 out of 10

Managed to drop the ball into his net under no pressure whatsoever. Wenger may have taken an unneccesary gamble promoting the keeper to his starting XI but he would hardly have expected such an abysmal response, though Ospina couldn’t have done much about the first.

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Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Hector Bellerin: 6 out of 10

Salino struggled to keep up with the pacey Spaniard who attacked with verve when Oxlade-Chamberlain cut in. That thrust was allied with more dependable defending than a great many of his colleagues provided.

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Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Gabriel: 5 out of 10

A foolish yellow card on the stroke of half-time left the Brazilian walking an unnecessary knife-edge in the second 45 minutes. His commitment and passion is all well and good, except playing at a constant boiling point tends to leave you in those situations too often.

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Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Laurent Koscielny: 6 out of 10

On several occasions the defender was the last line between Arsenal’s porous midfield and Brown Ideye. His interceptions kept the hosts in the game throughout the first half.

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Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Kieran Gibbs: 5 out of 10

Too often he and Alexis Sanchez seemed to be operating on entirely different wave lengths, with the reserve left-back earning a berating from his teammate for one particularly sloppy pass. He was also guilty of switching off for the visitor’s third.

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Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Santi Cazorla: 5 out 10

His defensive deficiencies were on display for Olympiakos opening goal. Converted attacker or not he should have known to close down the opponent on the edge of the box. As a leader he was perhaps worse, remonstrating with the referee and letting the occasion get the better of him in a way that could have spread to his colleagues.

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Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Francis Coquelin: 5 out 10

Played like a man rushed back from an injury, though of course Wenger had no choice. He struggled to stem the tide of runners from deep and could not keep up with the likes of Pardo. This was not Coquelin at his authoritative best and it was little wonder he was removed early.

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Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain: 5 out of 10

It turns out if you say a player has no confidence he will play as if that is the case. His running was as purposeful and direct as ever, but when opportunities came he seemed to lose faith in his abilities.

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Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Mesut Ozil: 6 out of 10

On more than one occasion he pulled off the sort of beautiful pass only he is capable of, and his willingness to come deep helped Arsenal start many of their best counters. However in the second half he faded when faced with the massed ranks of Olympiakos defenders, struggling to conjure a way past.

Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Alexis Sanchez: 8 out of 10

On this kind of form you would expect him to dribble past every player on the pitch. Then go round them again just for fun. An irresistible performance from the Chilean, who on nights like tonight is simply a joy to behold.

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Arsenal 2 Olympiakos 3 player ratings

Theo Walcott: 7 out of 10

With every passing game Walcott looks more and more a centre-forward. His runs are intelligent enough to find space and he is showing less of the profligacy that has dogged him in the past. He had one chance in the first half; he took it.

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The Frenchman is said to have refrained from singling out individuals but, nevertheless, made it known in no uncertain terms that he expects to see greater desire, intensity and consistency from his charges.

Tuesday's defeat means Arsenal are now on the verge of Champions League elimination at the initial group stage for the first time since 1999. They can still qualify automatically but, with home and away fixtures against group leaders Bayern Munich still to come, any escape will be an uphill struggle.

Should the Gunners lose both games against the Bundesliga champions, they will need to take maximum points from their remaining two fixtures and hope other results go in their favour.

On the domestic front, Wenger's squad face league leaders Manchester United at home this Sunday and could go level with Louis van Gaal's side should they pick up three points.

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