PAOK looking to bolster squad in January
PAOK will look to bolster their squad in the January transfer window, however much will depend on who departs from Thessaloniki. AGONAsport’s Athan Stylos investigates how PAOK plan to attack the upcoming transfer period under new sporting director Mario Branco.
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Potential Departures
Reports continue to circulate in the media that last season’s Greek Super League star, Amr Warda, is set to depart the club with the possibility of returning back to Atromitos, where he played on loan last year. The feud between PAOK manager, Razvan Lucescu, and the Egyptian midfielder remains evident, with Warda being dropped from the squad on several occasions already, due to being disrespectful towards Lucescu during training sessions.
PAOK are looking to sell defender, Yevhen Khacheridi, in January after signing the player as a free agent earlier this year. The Ukrainian has only managed to make two starting appearances for the club and has found it extremely difficult to break into the first team with Lucescu preferring both Fernando Varela and Jose Crespo in the position. It is believed that if Khacheridi was to depart, it would free up roughly 1.5 million Euros in the budget, money that could be spent on new signings as well as also rewarding current players with new contract extensions.
Teenage goalkeeping prospect, Marios Siampanis, could be on his way out of the club despite PAOK officials wanting to keep the talented shot-stopper. Having been at the club since he was just 16 years of age, the youngster has only made two appearances in the senior team and may look for greater opportunities elsewhere.
The possibility of PAOK selling one of Aleksandar Prijovic or midfielder Dimitris Pelkas, if an offer comes from abroad exceeding the club’s expectations and buyout clauses, should not be ruled out either.
Potential Signings
PAOK will look to attract more homegrown talent in the upcoming transfer window with Asteras Tripoli centre-back, Kostas Triantafyllopoulos, at the top of the list. The transfer will progress further and increase the likelihood of it occurring if both Yevhen Khacheridi and PAOK agree to part ways this winter. This will then free up a defensive spot in which Triantafyllopoulos can step into.
The second transfer will fully depend on what occurs with Amr Warda’s situation, as PAOK could potentially try and lure back Pedro Henrique. Having signed for PAOK in the 2016/17 season, Henrique has spent the past two seasons on loan, first at Qarabag in the Azerbaijan Premier League and this season at FC Astana in the Kazakhstan Premier League.
Contract Extensions
In a concern for PAOK, the club still has 10 players whose contracts a set to expire at the end of the 2018/19 season. The top priority is to extend Diego Biseswar’s contract, as Lucescu enjoys having his flexibility within the team, having the ability to play behind the striker as well as on either wing. Reliable defensive duo Jose Crespo and Fernando Varela also remain part of the manager’s plans going forward.
In addition, the contracts of Siampanis, Glykos, Toska, Malezas, Canas, Shakhov, and Karelis all expire at the end of the season. It is expected that only 5 or 6 of the free agents will be offered a new contact with the club come the offseason.
