JVS vindicates fans after opting for young, hungry players instead of ‘Mykonos FC’ egos
Nick Tsambouniaris praises the performance of John van’t Schip as coach of the Greek national team to date for opting to go with young and hungry players at the expense of big egos and settling on a long-awaited identity.
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At last!!! The foundations have finally been laid for the Ethniki’s path to return to past glories. For numerous years, disillusioned fans were calling for a change in mentality as the team slumped to nightmare defeats to minnows such as Luxembourg and the Faroe Islands. Instead of making wholesale change, the coaches stuck with the status quo and kept picking underperforming players either because of their ‘name’ or the fact that they belonged to a clique.
Results only got worse over time and spiralled out of control. A meek surrender early in the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers meant the national team will go six years without participating in a major tournament. Angelos Anastasiadis, who was clearly out of his depth much like other past coaches, departed for John van’t Schip (JVS). With qualifying practically out of the equation, the experienced Dutch manager promised to deliver on the changes fans had long been calling for. In addition to this, he also wanted to settle on a defined playing style.
After these two recent qualifiers against Italy and Bosnia, it is safe to say that there is finally tangible progress and a platform has been built. JVS shocked everyone by omitting the likes of Kostas Mitroglou, Kostas Manolas, and Sokratis Papastathopoulos but his selections were justified by the results and, more importantly the performances. JVS has essentially wiped the slate clean and has decided to look to youth in the remaining qualifiers. Based on the last two matches, it is a move that could prove pivotal to the turnaround in the Ethniki’s fortunes.
For too long, fans had to endure ‘high-profile’ players embarrassing themselves by displaying a clear lack of passion and determination. This led to the Ethniki infamously earning the nickname “Mykonos FC” as egos, tattoos, the latest hairstyles and holidays to Mykonos became the norm. These egos also played a vital role in removing Anastasiadis from the helm. He may not have been the right option, but which player publicly calls for the coach to be sacked?
The task was never going to be easy in Italy, with the hosts needing a win to qualify for Euro 2020, but the experimental team acquitted itself very well. There were a few eyebrows raised in terms of the starting side and the formation but it was effective. An undefeated Italian side was toothless and that was largely down to the Ethniki that stifled them. The trio of defensive midfielders did their job - Kostas Stafylidis was a good captain, Pantelis Hatzidiakos announced himself on the international stage and was strong in his debut, while Dimitris Limnios was arguably the Ethniki’s best player.
Limnios had a great chance to give Greece the lead after a great passage of play in the first half but his shot was well saved. With the scores still deadlocked at 0-0, Zeca started a swift attacking move after dispossessing Italy. It resulted in Limnios sending in a low cross into the box, but Efthimis Koulouris failed to convert. A brain snap from Andreas Bouchalakis gifted the hosts a penalty and that broke the young team’s hearts.
Aside from the performances of the debutants, another thing that impressed me was the in-game management from JVS. At the beginning, the Ethniki afforded the Italians time on the ball to get a feel for the game, however, midway through the first half the team pressed high up the pitch, when not in possession, to great effect. These changes during a game will be key to future success.
On Tuesday night at OAKA against familiar foes Bosnia, several changes were made again. Stafylidis maintained the captain’s armband but moved into the centre of defence to partner Hatzidiakos, and a more attack-minded starting line-up was fielded. Tasos Bakasetas, who played his best game in a Greece shirt to date, started as the attacking midfielder (he later stated this was his “best game for the Ethniki as he was deployed in his natural position”), Vangelis Pavlidis replaced Koulouris up front, and Kostas Galanopoulos received his debut.
The latter made it a debut to remember as he forged a strong partnership with Dimitris Kourbelis in the middle of the pitch. The duo shut down the dangerous Miralem Pjanic and kept the Bosnians very quiet. Pavlidis scored an excellent first international goal to open the scoring - his clever turn and shot cushioned into the corner illustrate traits of a player with a high football IQ. His passion was also infectious and echoed the thoughts of many after the game when he said the coach wanted “to see the passion which had previously been missing.'' Limnios was also dangerous in this match and caused the Bosnians headaches.
A rare negative was the defending on Bosnia’s immediate reply - Hatzidiakos could have done better but it showed why Stafylidis operates better as a left back as opposed to a centre back.
From that moment, it was Greek attack after Greek attack and on another day, the Ethniki wins by a lot more. Giorgos Masouras came in the second half and rattled the visitors immediately. Within seconds, his shot hit the post, then he spurned several chances (as did Petros Mantalos), with the best being a great move which started right from the back at the gloves of Alexandros Paschalakis and ended with a defence-splitting through ball that found Masouras but he could not put the ball in the back of the net.
Greece’s enterprising performance full of attacking intent paid off in the dying embers of the game as substitute Giannis Fetfatzidis found space in the box and saw his cross get tucked away into the net, which sparked jubilant scenes on the Greek bench as the coaching staff and the young players embraced each other.
It was the least the Ethniki deserved as the team’s endeavour and determination prevailed. The Ethniki enjoyed over 50% possession (another JVS trait) and mustered 27 efforts at goal, compared to Bosnia’s four. Even the irony of the match-winning goal cannot be lost. Fetfatzidis, who is considered an elder statesman in this team, was left out of the squad for the trip to Italy as he failed to turn up to a team meeting on time and was punished by JVS. A few days later, he bounced back emphatically by setting up the winner. This mentality was lacking for several years as JVS’s predecessors failed to get it right. This is what fosters togetherness and builds a united team.
For many years, I wanted an Ethniki coach with a long-term vision that would forge an identity. It is still relatively early days, but JVS has done an outstanding job thus far. The idea of being a team that can adapt to any given situation and adjust its game plan accordingly resonates well with me personally. We could not expect to go all-out attack in Rome against Italy, instead Greece were very well organised defensively and chose specific moments when to commit bodies forward. Greece’s pressing as the game wore on frustrated the Italians. Then a few days later, against a team with a weaker defence, the Ethniki played on the front foot at home and the energetic and positive display was rewarded.
JVS demonstrated his joy at the final whistle by stating “this is how we want to play football” and “we kept possession and played great football.” His ideas are being passed onto the young squad and it is this outlook that will lead to fans returning to support the team in droves at the stadium. I did not want the game against Bosnia to end, our display was easy on the eye. Many of these players are still learning the game themselves and will only get better (there are lessons to be learnt such as maintaining composure in front of goal and being more efficient). If this is just the beginning under JVS, I cannot wait to see the finished article!
