Olympiakos 0 Arsenal 3: Arsene Wenger hails 'perfect' performance as Gunners sail into Champions League Last-16

The Gunners progressed after Olivier Giroud treble

Arsene Wenger celebrates Arsenal's, and Olivier Giroud's third (Getty Images)

Arsene Wenger hailed the "perfect" performance of his Arsenal players after Olivier Giroud’s hat-trick secured a 3-0 victory against Olympiakos to confirm qualification for the Champions League knock-out stages.

Needing to win by any margin other than 1-0 or 2-1 to clinch second spot in Group F behind German champions Bayern Munich, Arsenal weathered early pressure from the home side before taking the lead through Giroud on 29 minutes.

Two further goals from the French forward in the second-half completed a famous victory for the Gunners, who progressed from the group stage for the sixteenth consecutive season, prompting Wenger to praise his team for their flawless display.

“We had a perfect performance,” Wenger said. “On the mental front and on the tactical side as well because, overall, it was a real team performance.

“It is a fantastic achievement for us. When you look at who we lost in the last three weeks – Coquelin, Cazorla and Sanchez – and we came here with all the other players who were already out.

“Not many people gave us a chance, but we are a real team. We are very close the in dressing room and you could see this today.

“We needed a perfect performance and tonight was one of the best we have given in Europe.

“I told you before the game that it would be the ‘greatest escape.’”

Giroud’s hat-trick embellished a supreme performance by the 29-year-old, who completed his scoring from the penalty spot on 67 minutes.

“He was number one on our list (to take the penalty) ahead of Walcott and Ramsey,” Ramsey said. “We respected the order and he took it well.

“He practised it in training and he was quite good, but it’s easier to score when he already had two.

“It was a perfect performance from Oliver. He scored a header, one from great pass from Joel Campbell and a penalty.

“He found himself in uncomfortable positions but he showed skills and character – he had had to fight like mad.

“I have always defended his character. He has something special on the character front and he showed that again today.”

Having finished as group runners-up, Arsenal will go into next Monday’s draw for the last sixteen as one of the eight unseeded teams.

Their potential opponents range from the Spanish trio of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid to Wolfsburg and Zenit Saint Petersburg, but Wenger insists he is unconcerned by the potential opponents.

“We’ll see who we get next round,” Wenger said. “I’ve not even looked at that.

“We were so much out of it that I put all my focus on staying in. We needed great character and this kind of performance will certainly make the team stronger.

“We escaped and maybe it’s a lucky year for us in the Champions League.

“This result makes us stronger and strengthens our belief.

“It’s a special night we were in escape mode before the game and we needed something special.

“When you do that it creates a positive memory for rest of the season. Maybe it is a lucky year for us, you never know.”