Panathinaikos cruise to victory over Apollon
GREEK SUPERLEAGUE - MATCHDAY 26
| Apollon Smyrnis | 1 - 3 | Panathinaikos |
|---|---|---|
| Vafeas 73' |
Chatzitheodoridis 19' Kampetsis 49' Macheda 79' |
Federico Macheda ended his goal drought with an impressive strike as Panathinaikos easily dispatched SuperLeague whipping boys Apollon Smyrnis 3-1 at the Georgios Kamaras stadium on Monday to climb above Panetolikos into sixth place.
Watch LIVE GREEK TV including full GREEK SPORTS coverage from AGONASport.com!
Giorgos Donis’ youthful Greens side were by far the better side against their struggling hosts, with goals from Ilias Chatzitheodoridis, Argyris Kampetsis and a superb third from Italian stiker Macheda rounding off a convincing win.
Nikos Vafeas was on target for Apollon, who also had Thomas Jaguaribe sent off after 55 minutes for picking up a second booking.
The win was a much-needed boost for Panathinaikos following the unsavory crowd shenanigans of two weeks ago which saw their derby clash with Olympiacos abandoned after 70 minutes.
This time the Greens were in the ascendancy from the kick off and deservedly went in front through Chatzitheodoridis in the 19th minute when his free-kick went over everyone and past Apollon goalkeeper Leftheris Astras.
The rhythm of the match dropped for the remainder of the first half with the home side struggling to get into the game while Panathinaikos passed the ball around with ease but without creating much of a further threat.
That changed after half-time though and just four minutes into the second half, it was 2-0 when Kampetsis side-footed home at the back post after Dimitris Kourbelis headed on a Chatzitheodoridis corner.
After Jaguaribe got his marching orders shortly afterwards for a second yellow card offence, Panathinaikos totally stepped off the gas and that let in Apollon who pulled a goal back through Vafeas in the 74th minute.
If anything though, the goal sparked the visitors back to life, and Macheda produced a brilliant piece of individual skill to dance his way past two defenders before firing a low shot past Astras to make it 3-1.
It was the Italian marksman’s seventh goal in 21 matches for Panathinaikos and his first since the Matchday 14 win over Atromitos.
HIGHLIGHTS: APOLLON SMYRNIS - PANATHINAIKOS
