Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger will be hoping for an early Christmas present when the draw for the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 is made after his side lost 2-1 to Olympiacos leaving them as runners-up in Group B.
The Gunners had taken a half-time lead after Tomas Rosicky’s first-half strike, but the Greek side responded after the break with two goals to secure the victory.
Schalke 04 finished top of the group despite their 1-1 draw at Montpellier on Tuesday.
“We have to wait for the draw but we wanted to finish first. We need a good Christmas present,” Wenger said.
“Some teams can get stronger until then, including ourselves. It’s important for us to focus on the championship and get ourselves back in decent form.
“We’re not happy with things tonight but I’m happy with the desire of the team.”
Meanwhile, Wenger was relatively pleased with his side’s performance as they look to rediscover their best form following the weekend’s 2-0 home loss to Swansea City in the league.
“It was an interesting game (against Olympiacos). We had a good first half and we had two or three chances to score a second goal, but we needed a second goal tonight,” he said.
“The younger players did well for an hour, that is very positive; they have the quality. We had a positive game. It was not the result we wanted but overall it was a very encouraging game.”