Wednesday 9 December 2015 23:09, UK
Charlie Nicholas thinks Petr Cech's 'calming' presence has been key to Arsenal progressing to the last 16 of the Champions League.
After losing three of their first four Group F matches, the Gunners completed a remarkable turnaround on Wednesday evening with a 3-0 victory at Olympiakos.
The impressive result secured Arsenal's place in the last 16 of the competition for the 16th successive season.
Although Olivier Giroud was the star on the night with his first hat-trick for the club, Nicholas also singled out the goalkeeper for praise.
"It's as well-balanced a set up as I've seen," he told Soccer Special. "To accept you are the team who must win by two clear goals, your first instinct with Arsenal is to be on the front foot.
It's going to be tough. Ideally (they would want) Zenit or Wolfsburg.
"But there's something about Cech that has given them a reassurance, a calmness to the defence. I think it shines through in the players.
"We talk a lot about character, resilience and spirit in the team. I think Arsene Wenger was embarrassed in Bayern Munich, and some of the other early games.
"But after tonight, the way they've responded, they've earned the right to be there."
Nicholas was also impressed with Mesut Ozil, who set up the opening goal with a brilliant pass out to Aaron Ramsey on the wing.
"He was absolutely fabulous once again," said Nicholas. "He looked as though he wanted to prove a point in European football. He went to the stadium with a big performance and he turned up, they all did, but he was sensational tonight."
The Gunners could now face Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Wolfsburg or Zenit St Petersburg in the last-16 draw on Monday.
"It's going to be tough," added Nicholas. "Atletico are probably not as good as last year, but would be favourites against Arsenal. You can get at Real but they would be strong favourites with Benzema, Ronaldo, Bale and Rodriguez.
"Ideally (they would want) Zenit or Wolfsburg."
