Ponce most prolific AEK player since Blanco

On loan from AS Roma, Argentinian striker Ezequiel Ponce is enjoying a hugely successful first season at AEK, registering 18 goals to become the club’s most prolific goalscorer in one particular season since Ismael Blanco.

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After their Super League triumph in the 2017/2018 season, AEK have struggled to meet the increased expectations, but Ponce has given the Athenians something to smile about. Signed on loan from Roma in the summer of 2018, Ponce was taken to Athens to replace fans’ favourite Sergio Araujo, and he has stolen the headlines with effective performances for the Kitrinomavri. Displaying a killer’s instinct, the powerful, stocky 22-year-old has tallied an impressive 18 goals in 37 matches across all competitions, with 14 of them coming in 23 Super League games.

On Wednesday, Ponce was the AEK hero once again, as he connected with a superb Petros Mantalos cross from the left wing to head the ball in and set the Enosis on their way to a 2:0 victory against Lamia in the first leg of the Greek Cup semi-finals. Similar to many prolific forwards, the Argentine possesses the ability to take advantage of any given opportunity inside the box, and despite only standing 178 centimeters tall, he’s a fantastic header of the ball.

Boasting 18 goals so far, he is now the club’s highest goalscorer in one specific season since fellow Argentinian player Blanco struck an incredible 24 markers for AEK in the 2008/2009 campaign. Last year, winger Lazaros Christodoulopoulos scored 16 goals, but Ponce has bettered that record and still has time to at least break the 20-goal barrier.

Top AEK goalscorers in all seasons at the top level since the 2008/2009 campaign:

2008/2009 - Ismael Blanco (24)

2009/2010 - Ismael Blanco (13)

2010/2011 - Ismael Blanco (15)

2011/2012 - Leonardo (13)

2012/2013 - Taxiarchis Fountas (4)

2015/2016 - Christos Aravidis, Ronald Vargas, Diego Buonanotte (all 11)

2016/2017 - Tomas Pekhart (12)

2017/2018 - Lazaros Christodoulopoulos (16)

2018/2019 - Ezequiel Ponce (18)

Following plenty of years searching, AEK have finally discovered their craved high-scoring forward, but now they have a major problem - keeping Ponce in Athens. AEK aren’t prepared to break the bank, and in an ideal world, they would like to extend his loan from Roma for another year. However, if stories in the media are to be believed, Ponce is keen on transferring to a supposedly stronger league in Europe, and he only sees AEK as a stepping stone in his career.

Transfermarkt value Ponce at three million euros, but if he continues hitting the target with such regularity, that figure is set to rise. Ponce’s AS Roma contract is due to expire in June 2020.

by Shaun Nicolaides

Image Source: to10.gr

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