Volos defeat Xanthi; Atromitos held
SUPER LEAGUE PLAYOUTS - MATCHDAY 2
Volos NFC got back to winning ways in the Super League with a playout victory against Xanthi, while Atromitos were held to a draw by Lamia in Peristeri.
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In Peristeri, Lamia held on to a gritty point against Atromitos, surviving a late charge to leave with a 1-1 draw.
Lamia had initially taken the lead in the 43rd minute with the first chance of note.
After a corner was somehow kept in play, the ball dropped kindly at the feet of Daniel Adejo, who slotted his ensuing shot past the exposed Christos Mandas.
However, in the fifth minute of injury time of the first half, Atromitos promptly notched their equaliser.
Rodrigo Galo, a 2017/2018 Greek champion with AEK, curled a fantastic free kick high into the left corner to get Atromitos back on level terms.
During the closing stages of the second half, Spyros Risvanis came close for Atromitos as his header struck the crossbar, but their second goal wouldn’t arrive. After two rounds of the playouts, Atromitos occupy second spot of the table with 33 points, two ahead of third-placed Lamia.
In their next game, Atromitos will play against Asteras in Tripoli, while Lamia host Panionios.
Last week, Volos had come up short against Panionios in Nea Smyrni in a disappointing defeat, but on Saturday they claimed their maiden victory of the playouts with a slender 1-0 triumph over Xanthi at home.
Nevertheless, Xanthi should have taken the lead in the 14th minute of play at the Panthessaliko Stadium, as a powerful header was cleared off the line by Iker Guarrotxena. Moments later, Guarrotxena almost made a vital contribution at the other end, thumping a looping volley into Carlos Abad’s grateful grasp.
Volos made the vital breakthrough in the second minute of first-half stoppage time.
Receiving a clever pass, Marios Tsaousis pulled away from his marker, before sending an accurate attempt beyond Abad into the right corner.
Volos subsequently calmly saw the game out in the second half to earn an important win. With 30 points on the board, Volos occupy fifth place of the playout standings, but Xanthi only have 18 points to their name. Volos will play AE Larissa on the road next week, while Xanthi face Panetolikos in a crucial relegation battle.
