Ten changes made to Greek starting XI from Armenia loss in June
Odisseas Vlachodimos was the only player in Greece’s starting XI on Friday that was also included in the starting lineup against Armenia the first go around in the disappointing 2-3 defeat in Athens.
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It was June 11th, 2019, just five months ago, when the Greek national team tasted an embarrassing 2-3 defeat in Athens at the hands of Armenia in Euro 2020 qualifying. After the defeat, the national team fell apart on television as Sokratis Papasthopoulos called for extreme changes in the Ethniki setup while then coach, Angelos Anastasiadis, backlashed with comments of his own about the Arsenal defender.
Despite a coaching change with John van ‘t Schip replacing Anastasiadis, things did not get better for Greece immediately as the Galanolefki fell to Finland 1-0 in Tampere before suffering another shocking result in Greece, a 1-1 draw against minnows Liechtenstein. The draw against the group’s bottom dwellers signaled an end to Greece’s hopes of qualifying for next summer’s European Championships.
However, things starting looking up when van ‘t Schip had more time to prepare for last month’s qualifiers away to Italy and at home to Bosnia. The Dutch manager called up different faces to the national team investing his faith in lots of young talent in a plan he has called “Project Qatar.” His investment showed promise with a respectable Greek performance in Italy, despite a 2-0 defeat, but really paid off when Greece defeated Bosnia at the OAKA Stadium 2-1 to record just their second win of the qualifying campaign.
The momentum continued on Friday evening in Yerevan as the Ethniki recorded a second consecutive victory in qualifying, defeating Armenia 0-1 thanks to a first-half strike from Dimitris Limnios. The result moved Greece into third place in the group with 11 points ahead of their final qualifier against already qualified Finland on Monday evening.
With the Ethniki at what seemed rock bottom just five months ago, Greek fans are becoming optimistic with John van ’t Schip’s makeover. Amazingly, only ONE player was in the Greek starting XI in Yerevan that also featured in Greece’s loss to Armenia in June: Benfica goalkeeper Odisseas Vlachodimos. The remaining ten players that started on Friday evening were either on the bench or not called up to the national team by then coach Angelos Anastasiadis.
Starting XI in 2-3 defeat in Athens: Vlachodimos (GK), Mavrias (RB), Papastathopoulos (CB), Siovas (CB), Koutris (LB), Zeca (CDM), Samaris (CDM), Masouras (RMF), Pelkas (LMF), Fortounis (AMF), Koulouris (ST)
Starting XI in 0-1 victory in Yerevan: Vlachodimos (GK), Bakakis (RB), Hatzidiakos (CB), Stafylidis (CB), Giannoulis (LB), Galanopoulos (DMF), Kourbelis (CDM), Limnios (RMF), Mantalos (LMF), Bakasetas (AMF), Pavlidis (ST)
Masouras and Koulouris, who both started against Armenia in Athens, were second-half substitutes in Yerevan on Friday evening.
