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Bakasetas is hanging around for another qualifying campaign, you better believe that. He wasn't initially called up for these games but called up as a replacement once Konstantelias was injured, that doesn't scream to me well planned out goodbye testimonial. I maintain Bakasetas has a role to play(off the bench), and to a lesser extent Kourbelis and even lesser extent Masouras. The team's defensive issues can't possibly be laid to blame at Bakasetas' feet. We created a bucket load of chances, as you mention in an attacking sense we have really turned the corner. Defensively we have massive issues. Individual errors which need to be rectified by the players themselves but also our structure and system doesn't seem to provide adequate protection. Jovanovic needs to sort it out and ASAP. You can't be going 3-0 up with 30 minutes to play and the match turns into a rodeo. We must get better at seeing out matches and playing out time to get the result. Otherwise no matter how beautiful we play or how many goals we score, qualifying for a major tournament will remain a pipe dream.

We haven't really talked about it here (apart from them spanking us in the Cup), but Levadiakos is having a wildly good season so far. They're in fourth place, with a third-best goal differential in the league. Perhaps we'll poach someone this winter or next summer?

That starting 11 was a joke. Whats the point of using players that wont be part of our next cycle? Farewell games? Did these "legends" win us a euro or take us to a major tournament to deserve an extra game? Jovanovic has ended up being a massive dissapointment.

what a fing joke! 0-0 at HT. Jovanovich starting Mantalos and Masouras he ruined our world cup dream!

Yes I agree. We have two meaningless games left. He needs to put in all three of new call ups. We dont need to see Kourbelis, Bakasetas and Mantalos, we know what they can do. That being said starting lineup vs Scotland should be the followimg Vlahodimos Vaggianidis Retsos Koulierakis Giannoulis Zafeiris Mouzakitis Tzolis Kostoulas Karetsas Pavlidis Teteh, Triantis should be subbed on in the 2nd half

So EPO is really epic: The Greens play 16:00 EET The Reds play 18:00 EET And we play 20:00 EET so we know what to do to avoid or choose the opponents and path we prefer. What a banana football association.

Is Jovanovich leaving? Ange would be my choice of your list, looking back EPO should have hired him back when they hired JVS. I have said I would like a big name manager such as a Klopp or Mancini no nonsense managers that know what it takes to succeed. Over the last few years we have seen EPO hire Skibbe, Anastastiadis, JVS, Poyet and Jovanovich an average group though I thought Jovanovich would get us to the world cup if not at least the playoff round. EPO needs to spend money to make money, bring in a high quality manager who has won a Champions league or Europa league at club level or a Euro at NT level like a Mancini.

Contract year for Ozdoyev, who surely knows Razvan appreciates the fine wine that is an elderly footballer Taison also doing very well this year btw

Pavlenka to the rescue.

First goal for Shoretire in the Eredivisie as he scored the 2-1 winner for Zwolle against Heerenveen.

Great points Dean, I said that EPO should just go all in for Klopp or a coach of that standard someone who has won a champions league or major international trophy like a Mancini for example. It will cost $ but the ROI will be greater if coach gets Greece back to the Euros. If we do not land a big name no nonsense coach I feel it will be hard to qualify for Euros as we will most likely have a tough draw given our ranking. Jovanovich did an incredible job initially in NL winning in England were hardly anyone wins competitive matches. We should have topped that group if not for giving up 3 goals in the reverse fixture and Greece would have had a playoff spot now. Greece were handed a dream draw getting Denmark from all the pot 1 juggernauts and Scotland who we have outclassed in NL. Still Jovanovich whom I like as a manager completely messed up our chances in that home match vs Denmark. Had we at least got a draw there it would have given us momentum going into the crucial October matches but he screwed up big time with the starting lineup and his subs at HT were baffling taking of Karetsas when we where chasing a goal? After this match we know what happened as the team had huge meltdowns in Scotland and Denmark. I agree with you about our defense but why did Jovanovich not fix this after the Denmark match. Koulerakis was one of our worst players. Hopefully we get our defending back to what we are use to giving up 12 goals against!

I totally agree. We need a proper coach with a solid resume. Can’t have coaches of the likes of Skibbe, JVS, Anastasiadis etc that haven’t done anything in there club coaching careers… Ivan was ok for the most part but totally bottled it in these important qualifiers. Results need to speak for themselves and he didn’t produce that for us. Total shame. We have a talented generation coming through. We need a coach who has done things in European football that is in the range of the EPO budget. We still need to address the midfield situation. Bakasetas has done good for us and has given us goals but he isn’t the player to lead this team to a tournament. Everyone knows why. Kourbelis and Mantalos I don’t even know why they are still here… Also we need to start addressing our defence aswell. We should be looking at younger players continuously and should be hiring a coach that has managed at high levels around Europe. I knew there was a certain ceiling with Ivan but was hoping it wouldn’t be the case. Time for a new coach. Time to get rid of Kourbelis, Mantalos Bakasetas etc. Time for the new generation to come in and make things happen with a coach that will enhance their abilities and take them to a major tournament. The talent is there for it.

The ref with a name like that (Kokkinos), you knew there would be a red card in the game.

I agree with you that he did bring in the youth but he did not utilize them well. Why is Kourbelis starting? He was the worst player on the pitch at home vs Denmark dribbling around our box and cost us a goal. He was not in game shape coming from the Saudi league and Jovanovich starts him in a match of this magnitude! Bakasetas, Masouras, Manatalos, Kourbelis and Siopis cant be part of the team going forward. I thank them for their efforts for the NT but during their tenure Greece have qualified for ZERO major tournaments. Mantalos who first appeared at Euro 2016 qualifier vs Romania under Ranieri has failed to get us to a World Cup or Euro and he has only had a few great matches that I can recall like the NL match a few years ago vs Kosovo. Its time for a fresh start! This last campaign was a major failure that none of us saw coming.

Kifisia will miss half of their squad. 5 players serve their 3 yellow cards suspension, 1 players received 2 yellows on MD 10 and 1 player has an injury keeping him out of competition for a long time.

Thank god for replays. But always a blessing to have a game to watch after the most obnoxious American holiday!

Postecoglou would be the right fit in my opinion. With his playing style and the young generation coming through, it will be the right move. Also the corruption has to stop with certain player selections. Especially the older players.

I truly believe Jovanovic will not be continuing for our Euro qualifying campaign. I do believe, however, that EPO realize how great this generation can be, and won't spoil the next hire. They will spend $ to get a quality coach. While it is still too early to tell who will get let go after the WC I can put some of my nominees in no order : Lucescu - Would Rasvan leave PAOK to coach a NT like his father? Thiago Motta - Linked in the press, but supposedly wants to be a club coach Ange Postecoglou - I doubt this would happen due to his recent problems with Marinakis Southgate - Would this be a homerun hire? What names would you be interested in?

I am so thankful for Ivan calling up and playing our most talented young guys but at the same time stuck with the failed older generation that haven’t gotten the team to any tournaments the past 10 years. On top of that his coaching also failed this team. The failure in qualifying and this team he put out in this game told me everything I needed to know. He has to leave. Thank you but it’s time to move on. We should’ve topped the group in my opinion. Also thank you to players like Bakasetas, Masouras, Siopis, Mantalos and Kourbelis but you’re no longer needed in this team. Let’s start over with a coach that will help this new young generation and let’s finally get work.

And to all our AEK fans out here we need to call it for what it is. Mantalos has never once been good for the national team besides a lone game against Kosovo or something. He’s barely been “good” for yall. I understand the sentiment of have a good Greek player on your club team, I will champion Konstantelias floppy on the floor and dribbling into 3 defenders till the day he leaves PAOK lol. But come on, same thing with Masouras for Olympiacos, let’s not kid ourselves like we have been for a decade.

Great - guess this is a good match to miss...

Belarus 0-0 Greece HT

This has to be a prank

Greece vs Northern Ireland is just starting up. Current standings : 1. Greece 4-0-0 12 pts +10 GD 2. Germany 3-0-1 9 pts + 11 GD First tiebreaker is H2H, then it's GD in head to head matches (+1), then goals scored in head to head matchup. So if my calculations are correct, if we win out and lose to Germany 1-0, or 2-1 we still advance.

Ancelotti is the coach of Brazil currently. And Klopp is waiting for the US job to open up. Truth is we won’t pay top $ for anyone of that stature. I was hearing Thiago Motta is being rumored. Probably have to go a route of someone who is currently coaching a club team who wants to mold this young nucleus.

This team is young and still learning to play together. Bakasetas wasn’t called up originally bc of injury, he had just recovered. They need to figure out how to be disciplined. They can score at ease and just as quickly give it up. Once they settle in, they will be great. This group, being a team of four, left us little room for error. The Denmark game shattered our confidence and we went three straight games making stupid errors.

What’s happened with our defence. If it wasn’t for Vlachodimos no way we win. We could have easily conceded 4 goals and lost this one. We have now conceded 11 in last 4. We haven’t kept a clean sheet in qualifiers. That should be a top objective in the last game. Then we look forward to Nations League A, and up against the likes of Spain, Portugal, Netherlands, England, Italy, Germany, Croatia, Denmark, Belgium, Czech, Turkey. Hope we sort our defensive woes by then.

I genuinely believe this was a “goodbye testimonial” to Bakasetas, Kourbelis, Masouras. Hence why Jovanovic started the 2 and brought in the other. It is clear we will be a top team attacking wise during the Euro Qualifiers, but as everyone is mentioning we struggle defensively. Vlahodimos saved 3 point blank chances. The fact the u21 team looks like one of the best in Europe right now is good so I assume we have a very good group coming up

It's weird how our strongest trait (defense) is now our worst.

And to make matters worse, we are gonna be on 9 points to end the campaign and 2nd place will be on 10. If we had gotten a result vs Denmark or the first Scotland game we woulda been in playoff

The defense is absolutely horrible this whole campaign. Given the talent at the back it’s inexcusable.

Tzolis GOALARA 3-0

lol Bakasetas 1-0!

lol kourbelis and bakasetas starting

I so so love the Ethniki but this really sucks to watch this match today after what happened in the last international window. We are playing our second last qualifier vs Scotland and Greece are already eliminated! A team we should have disposed of and had second place for ourselves. This is the most disappointing campaign since the 2016 Euros. I don't want to see Kourbelis, Bakasetas and Mantalos again on the pitch for the NT. Megali Dropi!

The lads miss a lot of players due to international duties at all levels and several countries. On top of that Kottas was injured in the warm up and needed to be replaced. This is to much to handle against one of the top contenders, Niki Volou: trailing 0-3 after 25 minutes.

Insane how our MVP from last season has so quickly fallen out of favour this season. Ozdoev is 33, and while he is having a great year I would much rather keep Camara on board for next season than renewing a soon to be 34 year old Ozdoev.

It's time to start your favourite topic for the upcoming transferwindow, @pash! Rumor has it that Mady is guided to the exit as he is #5 in the pecking order.

Another PAOKtsaki is born. Chalov was congratulated by the PAE for the new member in the family.

Mythou scored one of the goals in the 2:0 over Belarus in the U10 EURO qualifying game played in Turkey.

After playing a year for Nea Salamina Vellios now plays for Niki Volou.

Fantastic to see them playing out of Toumba for a change instead of the potato field at Mesimvria

These guys are also now predicting 91% chance of us making the top 24 and 14% chance of top 8. I'd expect the top 8 chance to only marginally increase if we beat Brann (as we are favored), so we'd need to upset Lyon to make very big progress. Also, for fun, here are the others that are ahead of us, sorted by % chance of top 8: Aston Villa 92% Midtjylland 87% Lyon 85% Freiburg 73% Real Betis 55% Porto 51% Celta Vigo 50% Braga 41% Ferencvaros 32% Fenerbahce 29% Roma 32% Lille 29% Stuttgart 21% Genk 22% Viktoria Plzen 22% Nottingham Forest 20% Bologna 19% PAOK 14% Perusing the next two match days, some interesting matches that can affect all that: 27 Nov (our Brann game): Fenerbahce vs Ferencvaros - both above us, any result will see us improve relative to someone Bologna vs Red Bull Salzburg - RB can beat Bologna, which would be great Victoria Plzen vs Freiburg - same idea as Fenerbahce's game Roma vs Midtjylland - we'd have to hope for a Roma loss 11 Dec (our Ludogorets game): Midtjylland vs Genk - again, hope for Midtjylland to keep winning Celta Vigo vs Bologna - hope for a Bologna loss Brann vs Fenerbahce - Brann is currently right below us so if we do win our tie then we can potentially have some help if they somehow beat Fenerbahce Young Boys vs Lille - very long shot but Young Boys taking a few points off Lille would be huge for us

congrats to our team for the win !

So after the great result vs Young Boys, an updated stat from the famous "football meets data." They still haven't released the full "top 8" and "top 24" percentages, but I'd imagine we slightly improved for the top 8 as well. Also, for Greece in general:

+2.000 points added to our tally as the minimum starting bonus of 3.000 was reached with the draw vs Maccabi and win vs Lille. 42.250 points in the ranking and #53.

Closed the gap slightly with Czechia and got a little bit more distance from Poland!

To reap benefits from the win against Lille, we need to win this game as well. This will not be very easy game at all.

2-0 for our U19. Antonis Aretis with a brace after being subbed in in the 71st minute. Next opponent Legia Warszawa. Despite losing 3-2 today the aggregate score was in their favour: 6-4.

I really hope that we call up some new faces. But I don’t think Ivan will do it. This team needs youth involved. Also Pantelidis has been performing really well for Kifisia. Kyziridis also doing very well for Hearts. Both not really world class but I can see that they can improve the Greek team. The generation of Mantalos, Bakasetas ect are not helping this team reach the next level. We need players with close control and talent. I don’t see why Tzimas and Kostoulas don’t get called up. Both look ready for this team even in the limited amount of game time they’ve had. When they’ve played for Brighton they’ve looked great. Greece is starting to produce a lot of good strikers. Theres around 8-10 players with 5 playing at the highest level. Theres even some wonderkids coming through in the Greek u19s. That’s what we need I just hope we can get some midfielders coming in with high potential. Mouzakitis is a great start. We have to also reward inform players. If it was up to me I’d go with this list currently. Tzolakis, Vlachodimos, Tsiftsis, Vagiannidis, Kostiras, Retsos, Koulierakis, Mavropanos, Hatzidiakos, Tsimikas, Giannoulis, Mouzakitis, Triantis, Zafeiris, Ntoi, Konstantelias, Karetsas, Kaloskamis, Kyziridis, Pantelidis, Tzolis, Ioannidis, Pavlidis, Douvikas, Tzimas, Kostoulas We have nothing to play for but we should start building for the next competition. Try different things and get new faces in.