AEL Limassol into playoffs, Apollon and Pafos FC win
CYPRIOT FIRST DIVISION - MATCHDAY 22
| Date | Home Team | Score | Away Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29-Feb-20 | AEL Limassol | 4 - 1 | Ethnikos Achnas |
| 29-Feb-20 | Doxa Katokopias | 0 - 4 | Pafos |
| 29-Feb-20 | Nea Salamina | 1 - 3 | Apollon Limassol |
In the final week of the regular season, it was an action-packed Saturday in the Cyprus First Division. AEL Limassol won 4-1 at home to Ethnikos Achnas, earning the sixth and final playoff spot. Also, Pafos FC won 4-0 away to Doxa Katokopias, and Apollon won 3-1 away to Nea Salamina.
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AEL Limassol hosted Ethnikos Achnas at the Tsirion Stadio in Limassol. AEL got the start they wanted in the 11th minute, as Andrija Madevac scored past Martin Bogatinov to make it 1-0 for AEL. AEL tacked one more on before halftime. In the 42nd minute, Ryan Mmaee added to the lead, making for a 2-0 halftime lead for AEL.
Madevac scored again just three minutes into the second half, and then Mmaee got a brace of his own when he hit from the spot in the 62nd minute. Vozinha’s clean sheet bid was broken up however, in the 90th minute when Marios Ilia managed to get his side on the board. Nonetheless, AEL still won comfortably, 4-1 at home to Ethnikos. It was an important win for AEL, as they will finish the regular season in sixth place, which gets them into the playoff group, edging out Pafos FC by one point. Ethnikos for the moment are in 10th place, one point clear of Enosis Neon Paralimni and the drop zone, they will continue their season in the relegation group.
Doxa Katokopias hosted Pafos FC at the Makario Stadio in Nicosia. In the 27th minute, the road side struck first as Paulus Arajuuri got one past Thierry Graca, giving his side a 1-0 lead, which held up through halftime.
The floodgates opened up in the second half, however. In the 62nd minute, Jerson Cabral made it 2-0, and four minutes later, it was Onni Valakari beating Graca, finding the back of the net to make it 3-0. Ten minutes after that, Doxa did it to themselves with an own goal charged to Dorian Dervite. It all resulted in a 4-0 win for Pafos FC away to Doxa, and a clean sheet for Artur Rudko.
Pafos finish in seventh place in the regular season, just one point shy of the playoff group. They will instead continue their season in the relegation group, albeit with little concern for being relegated, 11 points clear of the drop zone. Doxa will also be in the relegation group, but it’s a much different story for them. They finish in 12th and last place, and nine points behind 10th place Ethnikos. They will need to perform extremely well in the relegation group to even have a chance of avoiding relegation.
Nea Salamina hosted Apollon at Stadio Ammochostos in Larnaca. The visitors from Limassol got the start they wanted in the 14th minute, when Fotis Papoulis fired one past Tasos Kissas. The Cypriot international’s goal was the only one in the first half, and Apollon led 1-0 at halftime.
Salamina earned a penalty following a foul in the box against Vahid Selimovic. Kingsley Onuegbu took the penalty, and converted it past Dimitris Demetriou to make it 1-1 in the 62nd minute. Any momentum Salamina could have gotten from levelling the match was immediately extinguished, as the very next minute, Florentin Matei restored the Apollon advantage, and they never looked back. Adrian Sardinero tacked on an insurance marker in the 88th minute, and Apollon earned a 3-1 away win over Salamina.
Apollon with the win are in fourth place, where they will almost certainly finish, regardless of how APOEL do on Monday against Omonoia. Nonetheless, that is more than good enough to put them in the playoff group to continue their season. Salamina with the loss are now in eighth place, which could become ninth place. They never recaptured their form from last year, and so they will continue their season in the relegation group. They are six points clear of the 11th place drop zone.
