Five years of free fall

AGONAsport’s Ethniki contributor, George Tsitsonis, talks about Greece’s free fall over the last five years.

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After Theofanis Gekas’ miss at the 2014 FIFA World Cup that saw Greece bow out to Costa Rica in the Round of 16, I, like many of you had a profound disappointment inside me. So close to a spot in the last eight. If only Mitroglou had passed, if only we were a tad more clinical in front of goal with him and Lazaros missing chances in extra-time, if only we had done this, that or something else.

I remember reading the papers the next day. One headline read, “We love you even more now.” We love you even more now. A Greek sports daily actually said that about the national team after it lost a match it could have and probably should have won. That line however showcased perfectly that despite the defeat and feeling of having missed out on a unique opportunity in the world’s greatest sporting competition, there remained a deep, abiding love and respect for that Ethniki, and for many of the players of that generation.

That was five years ago. It might as well have been 25 years ago. Since then, we have surprised ourselves in how many times we have said we have hit rock bottom. There was always a fear that after the likes of Giorgos Karagounis, Kostas Katsouranis, head coach Fernando Santos, and technical director Takis Fyssas left their posts in 2014, that the team might struggle without all that leadership. However, no one would have expected the depths to which we would plunge. Defeats to the Faroes Islands and Luxembourg were astonishingly tough pills to swallow. Still, we tried to offer explanations and excuses. It was Ranieri’s fault. These new players only care about their tattoos and vacations in Mykonos, etc., etc. I’ll be the first to admit that I read the situation completely wrong. I thought we would just have that blip for a qualifying cycle or two.

Half a decade on, we are nowhere near figuring out how to arrest this momentous slide into the football abyss. In fact, we appear to be hurtling further into a bottomless pit of despair and increasing anger, frustration, and increasing apathy with regard to the Ethniki.

Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Liechtenstein was further proof that this team is on life support. The draw was harder to take in some ways than the losses to the Faroes a few years back. Losing to those European minnows in EURO 2016 qualifying was a massive shock. However, it was supposed to be a bad spell due to the changes the team underwent. Sunday’s result hurts even deeper. This is because we now have no illusions as to what we are: European minnows ourselves. Yes, we looked to have figured out things back in 2017 when we advanced to a World Cup play-off only to lose to eventual 2018 World Cup finalists Croatia. That was the high point of the last five years and is but a mere footnote compared to our usual form.

The talk of blame surrounds every bad result. The players and numerous managers since 2014 have all borne the brunt of the criticism. And rightfully so. All have been contributors in a spectacular fall from grace. Who is more to blame? Well, which came first, the chicken or the egg? Are our players, some of whom play for big European sides, underperforming or not giving it their all? Or are our coaches inadequate without the proper ability to inspire the talent we do possess?

My opinion is, does it even matter? Our national team has been on the decline because Greek football is in decline. What structures are in place to produce and develop young talent? Where is the investment to help the game grow? How can people invest when corruption is still widely believed to occur?

How can we expect a national team that is successful when there is no foundation to support that? Some will say that the period between 2001 and 2014 saw the Galanolefki achieve great success even if the Greek game was not perfect back then. Sure, that is true. However, a convergence of a perfect storm allowed that to happen. The right manager found an extremely talented group of players who were willing to trust him and who were keen on achieving something and those two sides were guided by a Greek football federation (EPO) who focused on how best to serve that team.

Once that generation of players began to retire and the managers and some of the staff left too, the EPO also changed leadership. With key individuals having left, there was a necessity to rely on the existing foundations of the Greek game to usher in a new era. Whoops, there are none. And we find ourselves where we are today, undergoing a free fall of epic proportions. A team who have dropped from the top ten of the FIFA Rankings to 54th (and surely to drop further after the last two matches). An Ethniki who now no longer qualify for tournaments. And a public who have turned their backs on the side having grown upset and fatigued thanks to missed opportunities and embarrassing defeats.

The buck must surely now stop with the current EPO leadership. It will be a Houdini-esque escape should the officials at the top keep their positions following this result. They are not to blame perhaps for the long-term problems plaguing the Greek game that have gone unchecked. They are surely at fault however for the poor decision-making of the last few years. The choices made for coaches who have seemingly been pulled out of a hat. That is no disrespect to coaches themselves. Rather it is a damning indictment of a flawed process of selecting a manager, one that is not transparent and which has yielded the results of the last few years.

Greek football needs an overhaul. There needs to be more organization and continuity between all the stakeholders from the grassroots level upwards. That is a long-term process that needs strategic planning, money, and cooperation between amateur and professional levels. The short-term fix is much easier. The EPO needs an immediate clear out. The existing federation has proven itself inept in doing right by the national team (from coaching decisions to stadium selection, etc.) and thus cannot be trusted to any longer be in charge.

Will that change the Ethniki’s results in the coming years? Perhaps not. What it will do is breathe new life into a relationship between federation and national team that looks broken down. I surely do not possess all the answers to fix Greek football and thereby the national team’s fortunes. I do know that inaction is equatable to acquiescence. Failure to take this simplest of steps, namely to hold those responsible for the decisions that have taken the team down this path, will mean the free fall we are in will continue.

by George Tsitsonis

Image Source: to10.gr

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