Torosidis to miss a month with injury
Early this week, Olympiacos suffered yet another blow on the injury front, as right-back Vasilis Torosidis picked up a serious knock against Apollon Smyrnis in the Super League and will consequently miss a month’s worth of action.
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After 28 minutes of play in Rizoupoli, Torosidis fell to the ground under a heavy Apollon challenge, clutching his right knee. Immediately, the signs didn’t look good as he hobbled off the pitch to be substituted, and subsequent medical examinations have now confirmed that the 33-year-old will miss between four to five weeks. As a result, Torosidis won’t be available for the upcoming Greek national team matches against Liechtenstein (March 23) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (March 26).
However, on a more positive note for Olympiacos boss Pedro Martins, first choice right-back Omar Elabdellaoui has returned to full training and will participate in the Super League battle against Aris at the Karaiskakis Stadium on the weekend. On Monday, 21-year-old Athanasios Androutsos substituted Torosidis and performed well in the 2:0 win against Apollon Smyrnis, but it’s assumed that Norwegian defender Elabdellaoui will be included in the starting line-up to play Aris in Piraeus.
Incidentally, the majority of Olympiacos’ injury worries concern the right wing. Lazaros Christodoulopoulos will miss the remainder of the 2018/2019 season with an anterior cruciate injury, January signing Gil Dias is recovering from a strain, and Torosidis has now joined the ever-growing list of absentees. Key midfielder Konstantinos Fortounis departed the field of play against Apollon with a knock on Monday, but according to reports, the 26-year-old will be able to compete against Aris.
HASSAN SET TO STAY, OLYMPIACOS CHASING DURMISHAJ
In the summer, Olympiacos are set to activate the release clause of loanee Ahmed Hassan from Braga, while the Thrylos are also eager to secure the services of fellow forward Fiorin Durmishaj.
Following a slow start, 25-year-old Egyptian international Hassan has gradually grown into the role of Olympiacos’ main source of goals, scoring eight Super League markers in 16 matches which included a hat-trick against OFI. With Hassan firing on all cylinders, Olympiacos want to make his loan from SC Braga permanent, and reports have suggested the Erythrolefki will pay the Portuguese club the required amount of money to keep the striker in Piraeus beyond the current season.
Olympiacos are also closing in on a deal for Panionios hitman Durmishaj. As previously reported on AGONAsport, Olympiacos have already spoken to Durmishaj about a move to Piraeus, and all the remains is for an agreement to be reached with Nea Smyrni side Panionios. The fact that Durmishaj will soon play for the Greek national team played a role in their decision to sign the 22-year-old.
This season, Durmishaj has impressed with Panionios, netting 11 goals in 28 Super League games.
SA SUMMONED TO PORTUGUESE NATIONAL TEAM
Goalkeeper Jose Sa, who is representing Olympiacos on loan from FC Porto, has reportedly been called up by Fernando Santos to the Portuguese national team for the two UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers against Ukraine and Serbia. In 2017, Sa was summoned to Portugal’s senior team for the FIFA Confederations Cup, but he is yet to make his debut.
Taking into account his reliable showings between the sticks this season, Olympiacos want to turn his loan into a permanent transfer, but stories in Portugal have stated that they only have until May to meet his release clause from Porto. In the 2018/2019 season, Sa has played in 26 matches for Olympiacos across all competitions, tallying 11 clean sheets and conceding a grand total of 20 goals. His value is rated at two million euros by Transfermarkt.
