Memorable moments which secured a drought-breaking championship

AGONAsport’s Athan Stylos analyses six memorable moments within the season which helped PAOK secure their first league championship in 34 years.

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1. PAOK - Olympiacos - 3:1

This crucial 3:1 triumph in Thessaloniki secured a nine-point buffer for PAOK at the top of the league table with 10 games remaining in the season.

PAOK’s inspirational captain Vieirinha scored a stunning long-range goal to give the league leaders the advantage within three minutes. Dutch winger Diego Biseswar doubled PAOK’s lead soon afterwards in the 20th minute, and in the closing stages, Chuba Akpom secured the win with a cool finish when clean through. Daniel Podence’s reply for Olympiacos was little more than scant consolation.

2. Panetolikos - PAOK - 1:2

PAOK found themselves in a tough contest against Panetolikos on matchday 25, and in the 55th minute, Admir Bajrovic gave the hosts the lead from the penalty spot. Nevertheless, PAOK’s championship winning resilience and character came to the rescue, as they came back by scoring two goals from Vieirinha and veteran Leo Matos in the space of four minutes.

3. PAOK - AEK - 2:0

PAOK comfortably defeated AEK at the Toumba Stadium in a headline derby against last season’s champions, with target man Aleksandar Prijovic scoring a goal in each half to secure revenge. This win gave PAOK an enormous amount of confidence heading into the rest of the season, and considering the shocking scenes witnessed in this fixture in the 2017/2018 campaign, it came as a sweet redemption.

4. PAOK - PAS Giannina - 2:1

In only his second appearance for his new club, Polish striker Karol Swiderski announced himself onto the Super League in some style, striking a last-gasp winning goal for PAOK as the game seemed to be heading towards a controversial draw. Swiderski had only just transferred from Jagiellonia of the Ekstraklasa for two million euros.

5. Olympiacos - PAOK - 0:1

The two main title contenders faced off on matchday five of the campaign in Piraeus. PAOK were forced to sit back with Olympiacos attacking powerfully, but thanks to a clumsy own goal from Jagos Vukovic and superb goalkeeping from Alexandros Paschalakis, the Dikefalos tou Vorra somehow came away with all the three points. A victory which was absolutely pivotal.

6. Asteras Tripolis - PAOK - 0:3

PAOK came into this away clash in Tripoli with revenge on their minds after last season’s shock 2:3 defeat. During the week, PAOK were in turmoil as their star striker Aleksandar Prijovic decided to depart for Saudi Arabian club Al Ittihad, and many believed that his loss would have a major impact on the team’s fortunes in the second half of the campaign.

PAOK made sure that the same result wouldn’t be repeated this season as they scored three goals in the second half with Vieirinha, Mauricio and an own goal from Asteras Tripolis defender Konstantinos Triantafyllopoulos securing the win.

by Athan Stylos

Image Source: gazzetta.gr

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