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Did anyone else crack a massive smile when they showed Otto?

JVS was SPOT ON with his opening statement

I represented Greece on the national level for the Greek National Baseball team in European competitions in Euro 2012. I was in tears the first time I wore that jersey and heard the anthem. So from someone who actually put on the official Greece uniform, I CAN confirm, that I felt in my heart I was representing my country and I put on the best effort I could for Greece.

One time special on Phantis PAOK forums. My prediction 4:0 for Olympiakos with two penalties in favor of the best team ever in Greece.

Did anyone notice at the end that they all got together to take in the win, they wanted it badly!!

We just went toe to toe with the best team in the world. Scoring 2 goals in 5 minutes was unreal. This was a huge confidence booster heading into March. A lot of positives from the boys tonight. We all should be proud of this performance..

Booked my tickets to Marseille. I believe the Scotsman will also be joining me.

Zeca our best player tonight. Really lucky to get the point though in a game where we did not create anything. Take this as a gift for the country's anniversary.

A win here will set off the following chain of events : - Ranked in pot 3 for WC Qualifying - Top the following group: England, Wales, Greece, Estonia, and San Marino . (We don’t drop any points) - Go into the WC Draw still as underdogs, with media saying we were a fluke. We get drawn with : USA, Greece, Germany, Japan. - Group goes as followed: Greece 9, Germany 6, USA 3, Japan 0. - Make a run all the way to the WC Finals against European champs , Netherlands. Media plays up the JVS vs Netherlands story line. We win easily, 3-0 with goals from Fortounis (2) and Athanasiadis (revitalizes his career in Greek 3rd division). JVS becomes a national hero. Wonderkid Tzolis is transferred to Barcelona for a whopping €3.5 million. - The following Nations League we start off 0-2 with losses to Armenia and Latvia

PAOK's new coaching staff:

As much as I criticized the coach for the mistake to start the game I give him full credit for making in game adjustments and changing the style to at the very least give us a chance.. Hopefuly now he sees unless we are playing a superpower we need to come out with speed and creativity and not just sit back and take the pressure..

Full of excuses! You sir drag Greece down to the lowest level on any international competition. Greece should be playing in League D with such BS performance. Greek fans deserve better! At least in Greece our track and field athletes brought us more joy than this hot garbage!

We are going to win the World Cup.

Why they didn't reseed based on FIFA rank is baffling. Greece should be playing both at home!

Diego says hi to all PAOKtzides.

And let's give Poyet his due! None of us were too crazy about his hire, and he is 4-0 in this competition, and 5-1 overall. This is the best we've been since we got back from Brazil.

The atmosphere has changed they are starting to learn how to close out games and get the 3 points this was a non factor with this team and previous coaches. The players look like they are plying for each other, they look like they have the passion that’s been missing for years and you can see that when the national anthem was playing with Tsimikas reaction. Even the players on the bench are not stop interacting.. The tide is turning for this team and Poyet is looking like a true coach we’ve been missing. Poyets in game decision making in his short time he’s been here so far is looking spot on he can read the game and the players that don’t have it on a particular night. When was the last time we’ve scored 7 goals and allowed 0 in 4 games played? Man the is the first time in years I’ve been so excited for this team..

That is a big part of the issue, we do not have an abundance of options in central midfield and the players that do play there are limited in one way or another. Kourbelis, Zeca, Siopis are all pure defensive mids who aren't great with the ball but are pretty solid at the defensive stuff (especially Siopis and Zeca) Bouchalakis lack of pace wouldn't necessarily be a problem if he made quick decisions but he doesn't. He wants time and space on the ball something not often afforded in modern football with so much pressing going on. His control is also hit and miss, at least a few times a game the ball will bounce off him and the opposition will win the ball back and launch a counter when half our team is up the pitch. Galanopoulos is the one who has a key role to play but injuries have completely taken over his career in the last 2 years. Disappointing for him and a big blow for the Ethniki. Alexandropoulos is still young and isn't a nailed on starter for PAO but he is an option, not sure he's the answer at least not at this stage. The buck starts and ends with our talent pool, it's limited. We can bicker on here about who should start over who but the reality is apart from a few (mainly defenders) we don't have many midfielders/attackers who are above Super league quality. And those who are have limitations which hinders them when they play at a higher level.

I had a chance to watch the King Otto documentary. What an amazing way to re-live the dream run of 2004.

Samaris doesn't have a team, before being let go for free by Benfica he basically hadn't played at all last season. Not to mention he's always been bang average to poor for the Ethniki. Fortounis is injured, so unless we roll him out on his crutches probably couldn't have played. Won't deny Sokratis and Manolas would've helped during this campaign, they have had off-field issues with management that has unfortunately ended their NT careers as long as JVS is at the wheel. But half the guys you mentioned it's not feasible for them to be playing currently. Samaris is done with the NT, he needs to find a club and he wasn't able to find one over the summer, clearly his career is winding down. Stick to AFL re, Blues for the flag next year Cerra to win the Brownlow.

I really hope Greece keeps JVS. He has the Ethniki headed in the right direction.

Have a read, from Hellas Football

Rumored Lineup : Vlachodimos Mavrias Chatzidiakos Tzavellas Tsimikas Zeca Fortounis Bakasetas Limnios Tzolis Giakoumakis

@Blackhawk can you please start a new game thread for Xanthi's road trip to Olympiakos this weekend since we own Xanthi? ?

I agree with Dutch Eagle, the joke was in poor taste, but not racist. Why does everything have to be politically correct? Also we should inform our Dutch visitor that PAOK is not a Greek team. Doesn't he know we are gypsies from Bulgaria or Turkey? I don't know which. It depends who you listen to.

Jesus, the Dutch just won't stay away. Going to be tough, but as always I see us really pushing them. They've lost 2 key players over the summer De Jong and De Ligt. @Yiankos this one is for you. ΤΗΝ ΤΕΛΕΥΤΑΙΑ ΔΕΚΑΕΤΙΑ ΠΙΟ ΠΟΛΥ ΜΕ ΤΟΝ ΑΓΙΑΞ ΠΑΙΖΟΥΜΕ ΠΑΡΑ ΜΕ ΤΟΝ άρη !!!

Congratulations for the great comeback and in general good display in 70 minutes of the game. We had furious 20 minutes and that is all. Unfortunately, football should be played for 90 minutes. I cannot say we understated Greece, as we have some kind of rivalry and full respect for the Greece team. We even expected good display from you side because of few missing players, as the new players always want to prove quality. But at end we have to be more than satisfied with result and probably Greece was closer to win. After 20 furious minutes and 2:0 lead we have started to believe that Greece have no attacking potential to come back. We had played on counter attack waiting for Greek's mistake that have never came. Our coach completely misjudged the game, and after red card he even did not know what to do. Leaving injured Dzeko to chase defense and huge gap in the middle with so many tired players resulted at end with huge disappointment. Anyway, this is not first time we got a lesson from Greece that football should be played for 90 minutes, sometimes and 95 ?. However, this is pretty much Bosnia new team. We have lost Lulić, Ibišević, Misimović and few other older players, and definitely we will need time to create solid competitive team. After two games, in my opinion we do not have what it takes for second place. Good luck in next matches. Greetings from Sarajevo.

Can we just get a new subforum made that's exclusively for these two? Yeesh

Skibbe/Tsanas seem to just pick players based on the jumper they’re wearing. Watch Fetfa getting call ups soon. Not that he doesn’t deserve it, but if you’re going to call him up now then you should’ve called him up earlier. Likewise Samaris who hasn’t played a proper game in 3 years and shouldn’t be anywhere near the NT (my opinion) but because he “plays” for Benfica he gets call ups. Tziolis is just a mystery. Good boy but hasn’t been at the level required for years now. The truth is our midfield is in a sad state. Samaris, Taxi, Tziolis sorry guys they are not NT quality. If I was an opposition manager and that’s your midfield, I’d be rubbing my hands together. That midfield is about as scary as a mouse. The only half decent midfielders we have are Zeca and Kourbelis. That’s it. Yes they aren’t technical but they run and fight and don’t need to have their hands held. They are just work horses nothing else. As for the forwards, that’s another story again. Yes Mitroglou is striking fear into the hearts of opposition defences ha ha. Sad to say but I miss the days of Samaras who could actually control the ball and have just a little composure.

After having my dinner my thoughts are straightened and this is how I see it. We lost together. Oh yes, Klaous should have scored more. Shakov should have. Leovac should have kept his hands from Viergever's body or positioned better. Ivic should have made another choice (a Mak-type for the tet-a-tet) or subbed earlier or not leaving Pelkas out of the squad. If If If, should should should. Tomorrow the sun will rise again. I will be PAOK again. Till the day I die. For better or for worse. And I will look again. And again in agony. It will hurt sometimes. And someday we will win a kypelo or protathlima, but we will suffer more. That is the essence of being a supporter of clubs of the people like PAOK, Schalke or Liverpool. Even Atletico, where the supporters are called the sufferers. Friday the sun comes up again and there will be a draw. With our next opponent and next dreams etc. etc. Keep your heads up. PAOK imaste!!!

Greeko, calm down and have a Beer (no pun intended) W out threats to refs, Oly continues to prove that they cannot win. It's the same crap every year, At best, oly seasons usually last till Christmas and then it's over. Panatha has left a name for themselves in Europe. What our eyes have seen, u will never know the feeling. Just because the years of corruption is finally catching up, don't run and blame others. Have a nice day.

What's interesting to me is the fact Olympiakos clearly has the most to lose by a Grexit. They are the only ones raking in E20+ million annually on the Champions League market pool. For 9/14 teams in the SL this is the equivalent of telling a vegetarian he can't eat meat for three years. Oh no, not that! For the AEK-PAOK-PAO-Panionios/Asteras sure it's a loss of anywhere from E2-E6 million depending on how optimistic you are, which is certainly no small amount of money. However, with a completely reformed football federation, that would hopefully include a more egalitarian revenue sharing model from television, European competitions, etc., as well as more competent referees, a better organizational structure and election reforms for KED and EPO. Taking the long view, a 3 year ban may actually be a benefit to the entire league 5 years from now. So why not bite the bullet? There is one thing that CANNOT be disputed; the EPO & SL are two very poorly run organizations - without even mentioning corruption/bribery/nepotism, consider this: -The last two or three years, there has been at least one team that has NOT finished the top flight competition because they were financially insolvent. How can you even get licensed to be in the top flight if you are broke before Christmas?? -We know for a fact that tax payment reporting was forged by some owners and somehow it slipped through the EPO/SL cracks. -The league has gone from 12 to 14 to 16 to 14 teams over the last several years. For a time, the SL wanted to go to 18 teams! Can you even name 18 towns in Greece that have the population to support a team? On what budget?? Where else does this happen, that we can't decide out how big our top flight should be? -The SL NEVER got a sponsor for the 2015/16 season. Think about the sheer incompetence that must entail. This is the most valuable league in the entire country. And no one wanted to put their names on the jerseys. -There have been multiple games each of the last couple of seasons suspended (or never started) because of fan violence. All games involved Olympiakos. C'mon, that's just weird. -Somehow, no international referees (those who officiate UCL-UEL-FIFA games) ever get assigned to the most important games of the year. At a minimum, that's incompetence. -Attendance has been declining for years. Although this can be a symptom of economic struggles, some teams only charge like 5 Euros for games. Most Greeks spend 5 Euros for a frappe they drink for 3 hours. So I KNOW they could spend 2 hours watching football if they were so inclined. This all adds up to one horribly managed, horribly designed, horribly thought out system. And if it requires government intervention to overhaul it completely, than I am all for it. Screw WC 2018, we all saw the Iceland game, we were not going far in that competition anyway. /endrant

RESPECT.

Hi there, Greetings from Bulgaria! My name is Ivo, big fan of Berba for a long time now. I've been "following" him wherever he goes and I am glad he went to PAOK, only 4 hours drive away from Sofia. :) You can expect many Bulgarian fans now, not only online, but most probably at Toumba too. Saw some of the live stream from the stadium today and I must say I am quite impressed - not only by the amazing warm welcome from the fans but also by the work from the club which developed Berba related branding at Toumba, made Tshirts available for pre-order, updated the player's profile on the website and all that in practically no time! Wow! I hear that Mr. Savvidis really wanted him - Berbatov is a kind of guy that needs to feel wanted and special, so I think that's the reason he joined in, not because Aston Villa offered less cash. How did Berba do today? He seemed happy and honest to me. Although, that "we are brothers" part was a bit too much, perhaps - I know you guys don't really see us as brothers and I get it. When I go on holidays to Chalkidiki, I am usually ashamed of the particular Bulgarians that go there. :) Anyway, Berba is a different story, I am sure he'll do great things here and make us all proud. Your expectations must be quite high taking into account the 1.6 million + bonuses that you are paying. In his last season with Monaco, he got even slower with age but hopefully his other skills will compensate that. He's never been a runner, after all. He's known for his finishing abilities yet you will see that he's even more useful for building attacks - always taking the right decisions. Being clever on the field is his biggest strength, if you ask me. Sorry for the long message. Here are some of my favourite Berba gifs as a reward for reading all that:

I think some here are reading too much not the Essien move and creating premature conclusions before the guy can play a few games. My bottom line all this as follows. Essien if he can stay relatively healthy and play 20 odd games for PAO this year ( always risky numbers with his medical track record ) he will be a huge upgrade over anything PAO had at central midfield last year. The man is a quality professional footballer Now the money PAO/ Alafouzos/Puma / my grandmother etc have spent to bring Essien to PAO is a big deal why again ? Didn't realize we have accountants here in these forums . All Greek SL teams piss money away every year on transfers. Some turn out to be ok and contribute to the team while most are garbage wasteful ones anyway regardless of total cost. In 12 months from now half the current PAO and OLY , PAOK and AEK squads will be different than the ones we are looking at today. Can't we all just be happy here that Michael Essien will be wearing a green jersey soon ? Even if its not that many games. I suppose a few here would prefer some unknown Portuguese or Ghana player to come to PAO on a free transfer and a 6 month contract just because he's cheap.

The xasapi and the cripple. Eleos. You were, without a doubt, one of the people calling Cisse a sapaki one month into his first season. No doubt about that. It's August. Relax. Eisai toso ypervolikos merikes fores. Sanchez has played like 45 mins in a PAO jersey. I'm not saying he's an all world CB but he isn't s%$#!. Everyone wants the team to start the season rolling on all cylinders. It doesn't really happen like that, especially when you have so many new faces. As for Abeid, I think last year showed how big of a loss he was to the midfield. He's young, he's performed in this system and with the majority of these players, and he plays in a position of desperate need. He's a big pickup for PAO and we should be thankful he will be wearing the jersey until 2018.

Poyet addressed it a few days ago and essentially said, he wasn't called up for these matches because in order to fit him in, the formation needs to be changed from a 4-3-3 to a 4-2-3-1. It seems Poyet, as other managers before him at both club and country level don't like Fortounis' lack of work rate and discipline without the ball. He did make a point to say just because he wasn't called this time around doesn't mean he isn't in future plans. In a 4-3-3, Poyet wants his midfield 3 to press without the ball and track the opposition not just play with the ball. Bakasetas, Siopis, Kourbelis offer these things. Clearly he thinks Bakasetas offers enough attacking drive (with the wingers and striker) to create enough opportunities to score. Poyet also described Bakasetas as 'untouchable' atm in his current Ethniki form and it is hard to argue given his performances over the last year. Fortounis has long been discussed here and in the Greek media, he's a media darling and they are just as shocked he hasn't been included. Me personally, I see the reasons why but don't necessarily agree with his exclusion all together. Here's a link to Poyet's explanation in full for anyone interested. https://www.sport24.gr/football/apokalypseis-poget-ayta-eipa-sto-tilefono-me-ton-fortoyni-o-mpakasetas-einai-untouchable.10061489.html

Solid win first up, seems we never really got out of 2nd gear and still managed to score three and hit the woodwork another 3 times. On another day we score 5-6. Not too much more to take out of it but the 3 points. France beating the Netherlands is good news, it means assuming we beat Ireland in Greece in June (we also play France in June but we assume that's a loss and anything we get out of it is a bonus) we would be leading the Dutch heading into our match-up in September. The Dutch don't play in June due to the Nations League finals. It will be important going to the Netherlands and being 3 points clear of them in September, meaning a draw will keep ourselves clear of them heading into the last 4 matches. Schedule has helped us, and France sweeping the group will also help. We can keep our noses in-front of the Netherlands until they come to Greece in our 2nd last match. A lot of water to go under the bridge until then, but if we take care of business v Ireland (not easy) and Gibraltar we are in with a fighting chance to pinch 2nd spot.

Athanasiadis replaces Dioudis in the Ethniki!

I might be alone on here thinking this but I’d like to see JVS take this team to World Cup qualifiers.. I think he deserves a chance. Changing coaches should not be an option right now IMO...

Regardless of what people think Giannoulis is worth or what they'd be satisfied with a sale amount, I'd prefer we don't sell him at all. I just don't think he's easily replaceable. Also, the level of his improvement in the last 24 months, and especially in the last 12 months has been simply astonishing. Knowing our club though, we'll probably sell him for peanuts, and do it before the Krasnodar game. Who knows it could go similar to the Limnios sale, extract below. FC Koln: Limnios good player. We buy. PAOK: Very well. 7 million. FC Koln: 3 million. PAOK: You crazy. The guy is only 22 and has matured so much in the last year. He is the FIRST guy on the team sheet for the National Team. FC Koln: 3 million. PAOK: OK. 6 million. FC Koln: 3 million. PAOK: OK. 5 million, but that's my last offer. FC Koln: 3 million and we'll throw in a poster of Wilhem II. PAOK: Deal, but can we do it after the Benfica game. Our regular RB is having interpersonal problems with the manager and our backup RB is injured. We have a up-coming young kid but the manager doesn't rate him. FC Koln: No. We want him now. PAOK: OK. Would you like me to drop my pants now or later. FC Koln: First I give you poster of Otto von Bismarck, then drop pants. PAOK: Thank you, thank you. FC Koln: If Limnios is so important to you, why did you not renew/extend his contract. PAOK: Who ? (hands Limnios his luggage and shoves him out the door).

I think Kolovo is on the upswing in his career. That was a gutsy, hungry header. I'll wait before I pass judgement on him. He saved us today.

Listen, I love you yiannaki, but you are triggering my OCD by starting the match thread in a different way to normal. this is my safe space where I come to marvel at the stupidity of JVC and ponder the next Machiavellian move of the great Ivan. Let blackhawk open the thread and then go hammer and tongs at the skoulikia.

I'm sick of hearing negativity on this forum of our beloved national team. Seriously what is it that makes people bash our own team. Be positive. Even a Croatian journalist said that how is it that we do so well but not have one top star in the team. I want everyone to have a look at the video and specifically that question. Sokratis couldnt have said it any better. Have some belief for god's sake. I always hear we don't have depth, our players are not good enough, we have to play like this, we have to play like that. Enough! We are not a perfect team we will probably never will be. But as Greeks we have heart and the one thing we know is pulling through when our back is against the wall. Just be positive and if we don't succeed accept it and say something positive about it. This goes to everyone who is always whinging and complaining, im to blame as well but some people just don't stop. I believe we will win both matches. Be proud and look forward to the match!

Pirated Pirates: 4 3 3 Rockafella Skank (scores) NIck the Greek George Laz DJ (Fetfa) J1078 Blackhawk Argy Molon Lave Akritis (vc) Red Sherriff Boxou La Mendell (c) Bench: Ausgreek

Amorgos, it's that time again! I've searched long and hard to find an avatar for you. If PAOK wins, will you make this your avatar for a week ?

Off course. As I am not going to Greece this year and the team is in the neighbourhood I must go "na chortaso". Hope to talk to some players again and take some photo's with two of my kids (The eldest one only likes to be in Toumba for the atmosphere, as he doesn't like football), like last year:

There is one big difference between the two incidents. PAOK was punished -15 points (3x5), monetary fine and fan ban for the incident. The happenings at Karaiskaki were not even mentioned by the ref in the official match report. It's these double standards that fuel fan violence.