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I think it's fair to say if Fortounis and Donis are playing we probably win that game. Fortounis obviously out of our control but I can't agree with the logic of not calling up Donis. He isn't fit? Neither is Torosidis, they both have played the same mins this seasons a big fat zero. The difference is we sorely lack creativity and especially with Fortounis injured you don't leave Donis out. Hopefully we batter Liechtenstein and Van Schipt is given the rest of this campaign and leads us into World cup 2022 qualifying. Any slip up there and there ever revolving door of managers will likely continue.

Our defensive plan was the best it’s been this whole campaign including the friendly with Turkey. We didn’t concede the usual 2 goals in the first half as we have seen over the last 4 games. As @Dean97 said Manolas closed down Pukki who is quick and he seemed frustrated all night. At least Van’t Schip corrected the defence which especially let us down vs Armenia and ultimately costed us three points.

It’s actually very simple. Play your fastest and most skill full players. Koutris, Donis, Tsimikas, Pelkas, Masouras, Vrousai and Fetfatzidis have speed. We need to utilise there speed and give them instructions to run into space and then create opportunities. Fortounis or Tachtsidis can be the providers and set up goals. You can have Koulouris ( I’m a bit harsh with him as I’m not a big fan) or Pavlidis in the box ready to score. Kourbelis is not going to solve our problem. Bouchalakis the same. These guys are reserve players for any of the top 10 countries. The only players that you could say could play in any international teams are Manolas and Sokratis. Fortounis and Donis would at best be used as subs. That’s the reality. We are lucky in a way Manolas and Sokratis are fast. The way Manolas closed down Pukki in the 2nd half I don’t think anyone else would’ve made it. So now we know Kourbelis and Samaris aren’t cut out for international level. Who should we replace them with? Galanopoulos? We just have to deal with what we got I guess.

This is why Samaras was so good for us. He was able to create something all by himself and often isolated as a quasi LM/ST. I do think we have good players but finding the right formula of players and avoiding injuries is getting the thread in the eye of the needle. I think Mourinho would be an amazing coach for Greece but it's below his pay grade. Zeca should've definitely started. Guy always puts 110% shifts in there. His stamina is world class. Tsimikas is in form as hell and instead he starts Stafylidis who's dissapeared for 2 years. These coaches have made Fernando Santos look like a genius in retrospect but Santos understood Greek football having lived there for years and was foreign enough to be detached enough to make selections. Our defense was relatively solid but goals win games. If you're going to play Koulouris you have to drill the attacking mid on how to feed him. That's ground through balls and get the ball to him near the 6 yard box not hail mary lobs from the half way line (I've seen this done 5x times this game)

Managers for this NT have been fielding "in form" players for the last 5 years and the results have been horrifying. I will take a bench player playing and training in France, Germany, Italy and Portugal over Bakasetas, Bouchalakis, Kourbelis, Kolovos and Pelkas any day. Donis being left out is a disgrace. He should have been starting. I have never been the biggest Mitroglou supporter, but when he's healthy, you take him and hold the card for a super sub. Fetfa on the bench and not even asked to warm up down 1-0? Manager was warming up defensive midfielders and left the only player on the bench that can ask questions of that Finnish league backline. Absurdity. The wasted sub on cramped up Torosidis could have been used for another attacking player. That was a big blow as well.

Im implying not even a decent cross came to his direction. Let alone a decent ground pass in the box.

Atromitos is not a better team than the Greek national team and I’d say he did alright... I think we’re being a bit too hard on him. We put a lot of pressure on our strikers. Always playing alone up top with HORRIBLE service. He didn’t even get a cross to header. I hope coach puts them on crossing training NONSTOP

Jagshemash! Cyprus playing the land of Borat

Ωραίος Ολλανδέ!

0-0 με τον Ολυμπιακό Βόλου. ΑΡΗΣ (Τ. Τερζής): Κουέστα, Σόουζα (45΄Δεληζήσης), Μπαγκαλιάνης (45΄Βέλεθ), Τσαγκαλίδης (45΄Μενέντεθ), Κωνσταντινίδης (45΄Σούντγκρεν), Μπάσα (45΄Ματίγια), Αμπού Μπα (45΄Σάσα), Μπρούνο Γκάμα (56΄Μαρτίνες), Ντουάρτε (45΄Μαντσίνι), Μπακούτσης (45΄Λάρσον), Τόνσο (45΄Ντιγκινί).

well, besides our defense coach fielded a very young team.. excluding defense and goalie we averaged 24 year olds. If I include the subs such as Pavlidis at 20 years old even less. I think the transition has already started, the team just needs some consistency thats all, we might be ready by the time the WC qualifiers come around.

I agree with you Emperor regarding the two names we have heard so far. Regardless of who they hire to coach, that individual will need to figure out how to get this team to score goals. He will need to be an out of the box thinker. I am hoping Haristeas will find a northern European since he has ties in that area. Having said this, I am with Neto, bring back Ronaldo Guiaro!!!!!

This comment says it all. This team can't put together 3 passes in close quarters. Some players have trouble controlling passes even when nobody is around them. I see balls bouncing off guys legs 5 yards away from them. I saw times when players had team members wide open for a short pass and didn't have the vision to see them. Other times I see the big three on defense pass the ball back to the keeper as they couldn't handle basis pressure from the FINNS!! Gut this team. No player over 25 should be playing the rest of these qualification matches. Give all the old guys a free trip to Mykonos but get them off the team. Something has to be done for the next tournament as this one is gone.

I read online that Zeca was excluded because he "seemed tired". I have never seen that guy tired.. EVER lol

We really missed Fortounis. Mitro/Donis would have been great but they are not fit. Mitro has been put in for just 15 minutes each for 2 games to help get his stamina. Donis hasn't played a game bc he was trying to earn a transfer, which he did. The two new guys did ok. I can see Kyriakos being that kind of leader, if he can ever stay healthy.

Something like that, they were on the move up and sadly it came hammering down. It’s a shame, they have a not bad stadium and got decent crowds

I think the mistake was trying to make this team play a possession game when its not possible. Van Schip hasen't been coaching long enough to change the football culture. Also a lot of our players struggle with one touch soccer so its going to take time. I think for us we should have adopted a counter attacking style where we absorb a little pressure and quickly transition as this creates space that we just cant do with our current midfield. Sitting Tsimikas was bad choice as he can create chances on the wing. Also Koulouris had zero ball service so cant blame him... I would have even played Koutris opposite to Tsimikas and see if that would work as Torosides is non factor nowadays. Bottom line Greece is not a place that develops players currently so why are we surprised?

We will win this match, Finland will lose to Italy and everyone will go crazy and think we will qualify for the Euros lol ??

At the end of the day goals matter and Koulouris has proven that he can score. In this Greece team its no good just to wait for service, you have to make things yourself and Koulouris can’t go that extra step. Pavlidis can as I’ve seen in Holland. We need to players to work, make runs, tackle etc. I’m questioning his ball skills because I don’t think he can make things happen he is good at getting on the end of the ball like a tap in, header. He is too limited for me. But he is a great poacher.

Our players have a serious problem with being pressed. It's unbelievable, it's like they've never experienced it before. Like they've been pulled out of another footballing era and dropped into the modern game. I find it staggering that they expect to be given 5 seconds to control the ball, take a breath, have a look before they turn and then FINALLY turn. It was an issue that we struggled with and cost us against Armenia and we struggled again last night. I expect us to be too good for Liechtenstein regardless of if they press or not but it's something that needs to be addressed moving forward. Although I'm not sure it's something that can necessarily be improved once players reach senior international level.

I say fire the players! If some of these guys wanna hold the ball for 2 mins and pass it backwards or sideways all the time, they are not for International football

I've used my modly powers to edit the title, since Greece is home, to add the venue name, and the fact that you didn't quite spell Liechtenstein correctly. ? If we don't win this game, fire the Dutchman

I agree 1000 percent with this comment. But Instead lets scout out all these different players and use qualifiers as a training ground It like we are about to get eliminated and we do not even have mitroglou as a sub available to try and score a late goal. Rehagel sometimes picked players who had no team , other time (i think) he might have had like 5 players from panathaniakos for one game. There are players that could have seen the field like Zeca , and fetzafazidis, mitroglou (if called ), that could have helped in this game

Hardly anything has gone right for the Ethniki in the last five years with the exception of the team getting to the World Cup playoff vs Croatia. We are in this endless cycle of blaming the coaches for there selections, subs etc. I think Van’t Schip picked a good starting 11. I thought vlachodimos should have started in net but Barkas was fine. The onus is on the players Bouchalakis had a chance to play in Masouras on the break I believe but he took to long and was dispossessed, not the coaches fault he doesn’t make that pass. Also Kourbelis for some reason makes a reckless challenge in a non dangerous area at the top of the box and concedes a pk. most of our crosses into the box were so bad for players at this level it’s unacceptable. Overall our side was slightly better than Finland’s and should have got a draw at least. If Fortounis is healthy and in the starting eleven then Greece wins this game as some other posters stated as well. It totally stinks that Greece are going to miss another tournament it’s even tougher to accept that they could not get 2nd in this group ONLY Italy have a better team than Greece ,Let’s see how they perform the next few matches especially when they play Bosnia at home and when they visit Italy. Van’t Schip needs time to get to know the players and get ready for 2022 World Cup qualifying.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.agonasport.com/agonasport-allnews/agona-analyis-how-the-greeks-performed-in-tampere%3fformat=amp agonasport offers what i consider a very accurate evaluation of players performance for this match

These are the dark ages file, we previously lost 4 games straight in 1995 but that team recovered and played football, that team would put 3-4 goals on this lost group of players. We are the worst we have ever been in modern times and we need a clean out in many areas, primarily EPO.

Well on paper, no. There's still 5 games left. We are 8 pts behind Finland. Finland need to loose 3 and we need to win all our games. Yeah right, like that will happen. ???

Correct, @Dean97 sorry bud, but I don't agree, Koulouris is actually not that bad with the ball too but have a proper midfield feed the guy and watch him convert. In all his games with the Ethniki he has had no service, just some half chances.

Lol what's funny is that if you compare the current talent pool to what we had available to us in Brazil for WC 2014, I think this group is much better individually. There is just something not clicking on any level.