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Olympiacos Wary of Chelsea Threat |
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Tuesday, 19 February 2008 |
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Where Chelsea is concerned, any slip ups will prove to be costly, especially for Olympiacos who will be facing them at home in Greece in the knockout rounds of the UEFA Champions League tonight. At least that is what their coach, Panagiotis Lemonis is afraid of. He said, 'Chelsea are not the most spectacular team in Europe, if the truth be told, but they are strong in every aspect and very tough to beat. They are very compact, excellent in defence, and lethal in attack. In games like these, you have to keep errors to a minimum. Our chances will depend on how we play defensively, just like in our previous matches in the competition. Chelsea are favourites, of course, but we are determined to put up a fight. The only thing that bothers me is when I see my players lacking passion, strength or determination on the pitch. My only demand for the games against Chelsea is to be proud of our performances afterwards. We are waiting impatiently to see how the coming weeks unfold.' Even with experience in England and a former Premiership player in Lomana LuaLua will not keep Olympiacos from losing if they are to slip up during the match. Anyone playing Chelsea will know to be on alert for at least 100 minutes on the pitch. LuaLua who was at Portsmouth when Chelsea manager Avram Grant was Director of Football was gracious and encouraging to keep him on the ball. Chelsea will be playing with renewed strength with the return of the African players although Andriy Shevchenko will not be featured after failing a late medical and was declared not fit. They might find the opposition harder than usual after a 2 hour lay off on air due to the snow on the runway during their flight to Greece. The cold conditions might be a deterrence to them but should be gunning from all areas to make it to the next leg in London.
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