Rejuvenated Panathinaikos stun PAOK in Athens
SUPER LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 22
A revitalized Panathinaikos side put reigning Super League champions PAOK to the sword by a 2-0 scoreline at the Olympic Stadium in Athens on Sunday as the Greens deservedly came out on top in the North-South derby showdown.
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After a closely-contested first half in which defence was on top at both ends of the pitch, Panathinaikos made a strong start to the second half and two goals in seven second-half minutes from Federico Macheda and Tasos Chatzigiovanis proved the difference on the night, with PAOK’s Icelandic central defender Sverrer Ingi Ingason at fault for both goals.
The result is a disappointing one for PAOK, who would have hoped for at least a draw against their Athenian opponents, but the Thessaloniki club lacked their usual cutting edge and quality and paid the ultimate price.
Panathinaikos’ victory - their fifth in succession in the Super League without conceding a goal - means that Giorgos Donis’ side tightened their grip on fourth place, while Abel Ferreira’s PAOK remain two points adrift of leaders Olympiacos, who were comfortable 3-1 home winners against Xanthi on Saturday.
THE MATCH
This Matchday 22 encounter represented the first of three meetings between the two clubs in the next ten days as they play this league match and then a pair of Greek Cup quarter-final ties.
The visitors overtook Olympiacos for first place in the standings last weekend as they labored to a 1-0 win over Volos, and Abel Ferreira’s side headed to Athens looking to get a victory which would cement their position at the top.
Panathinaikos’ season was in freefall a few weeks ago, but an epic Greek Cup comeback against PAS Giannina and return to winning form in the league had the Greens in buoyant mood ahead of this match
The Greens looked lively in the opening exchanges, but it was PAOK who had the first clear sight of goal after 10 minutes when Josip Misic’s excellent pass released Karol Swiderski. The Polish striker, however, scuffed his left-footed shot narrowly wide when clean through one-on-one with Panathinaikos goalkeeper Sokratis Dioudis.
From then on Panathiniakos took control of the game and Federico Macheda was guilty of missing the target from good positions after 11 and 16 minutes, much to the frustration of the home fans.
PAOK responded on the half-hour mark with another decent chance when left-back Dimitris Giannoulis crossed from the left for Mauricio, but the Brazilian midfielder’s shot was comfortably blocked by Dioudis.
Panathinaikos started the second half strongly, pushing PAOK back as they looked to get a crucial breakthrough to end the stalemate. And that crucial moment came three minutes after the restart when Panathinaikos midfielder Christos Donis was fouled in the penalty area by Ingason.
The referee pointed to the spot and Macheda stepped up confidently to slot the ball past Zivko Zivkovic in the PAOK goal with the clock showing 49 minutes.
The goal gave the Greens renewed confidence, and they continued to press forward in search of another goal. PAOK were still reeling from conceding the first goal when the home side then doubled their advantage in the 56th minute.
Chatzigiovanis took advantage of some poor defending by Ingason, and the Greek international forward clipped the ball delicately over Zivkovic when clean through one-on-one with the visiting keeper.
At that point it looked like there was no way back for a below-par PAOK team, and so it proved. Apart from a few half chances and plenty of pressing, Ferreira’s players seemed to lack the required creativity to get in behind the home side’s well-drilled backline.
There was a golden chance for PAOK to get back in the game with six minutes left, but after doing the hard work and getting himself through on goal, PAOK’s Croatian midfielder Misic was thwarted by Dioudis’ excellent save.
STARTING LINEUPS
Panathinaikos: 1 Dioudis (Gk), 2 Johansson, 3 Insua, 44 Pougouras, 5 Schenkeveld, 8 Donis, 21 Kourbelis, 22 Nagy, 9 Macheda, 10 Zahid, 11 Chatzigiovanis
Paok: 88 Zivkovic (Gk), 23 Giannoulis, 3 Matos, 4 Ingason, 5 Varela, 20 Vieirinha, 8 Mauricio, 27 Misic, 9 Swiderski, 24 Esiti, 18 Limnios
