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I'm f***en gutted. Speechless. Which is rare for me. I was so naïve yesterday thinking its a done deal. I really thought there was no way in hell we were not going to win this game. I wasn't expecting a blow out but a 1-0 or 2-1 hard fought Hellas victory was a sure thing in my mind. Once again, I was brutally wrong. This team has let us down once again. I simply don't get it. There are other "smaller population" countries in Europe such as Croatia, Serbia, Belgium, Holland, etc. that field competitive teams annually. Even the blockhead Albanians qualified directly. I simply don't understand. That was one of the worst performances I've seen from the Ethniki and I've been watching every game since the 1994 World Cup debacle. Countless backwards passes, no urgency, no desperation, playing in fear against a Georgia...come on! Gutted.

Olympiakos youth team reached it's first ever finals at the UEFA Youth League and will try to win it's first UEFA club title for Greece at any level. They face AC Milan. Let's make history!

OLYMPIAKOS ARE THE CHAMPIONS OF EUROPE!!!!!

If OLY wins they grab the ECL titelholderspot in EL. But if OLY manages to win SL they move to the higher valued (qualifiers) CL. Greece only will have 5 spots next European season if O Aris wins the cup and OLY finishes 4th in SL and wins ECL.

Definitely on the whole, the run in Europe has been a success. It is just bitterly disappointing to lose in the manner which we did. No fight or passion shown, no real chances created over 180 minutes of football. The fact that Brugge came with so many starters out and still completely controlled the game speaks volume for how much better they were. Taison (at times), was the only player on the pitch who looked like he could cut it at that level. Again, you can lose to a better team. It's the way we lost which stings the most.

Aston Villa will be next, they are playing very good football this season in the EPL. Fourth place and actually doing better than Manchester United, Chelsea and Tottenham. This will be Olympiakos biggest test of the Conference League.

I still can't believe Tzolakis outshined Livakovic in the penalty shoot out. That young Greek has ice water in his veils!

Hey, I remember those threads early in the season where there was little hope for this team. They definitely exceed expectations and made some huge European memories.

Fun: my youngest son is texting me on his way home from his internship that a friend is in Thessaloniki with his school and that he is in the stadium. Best education you can get: visiting Toumba!

Tzolis scored two goals yesterday in 2. Bundesliga and is now joined top scorer. His team is now #3 that at the end of the season gives them the opportunity to play promotion-games against #16 of the Bundesliga. 7 MD's remaining. Tough to reach places for direct promotion as they are 7 and 6 points behind St. Pauli and Holstein Kiel. And tough to remain #3 as Hamburger SV and Hannover 96 are close to them.

Boys just count how many coaches we’ve had since our last tournament we made. Not one of those coaches could figure it out? I’m all for getting a new coach I just don’t see it making a difference. At this point how can we seriously think we are only a good coach away from making a tournament. I don’t buy it anymore.. Maybe I’m just still super pissed from yesterday but all the good we did under Poyet means nothing now I feel like we are back square one.. No idea what the answer is at this point.. So frustrating..

Anyways you look at it this is a massive failure.

Poland almost lost as well, game came down to penalties. Georgia was playing more defensive, trying to hit us on the counter. We got gassed and then penalties happened. We had an off game, nothing else to say. We just couldn't connect. Feels terrible. I think every single one on this thread would have picked the same line-up from the last match. Kostantellias played almost 60 minutes. Tzolis could have helped but for who? He had to replace most of the back line bc of their cards/couldn't go on. Half our subs were the backline. You have three more subs, you replace Pelkas (made sense), you replace Ionnidis (he couldn't go on) and then the last one is the one that is questionable, but who would it have been that would have made a difference? I guess Pavlidis instead of Giakoumakis but that is a 50/50 choice.... They didn't have it today - plain and simple.

All I want to say is that we had 1 more match to win to make the tournament and they failed to do that. Smashing Kazakhstan 5-0 is great but it’s inexcusable to not beat a team like Georgia. Just to point out: - Tzolis 20 goals this season - Pavlidis top scorer in holland - Goutas and Siopis play weekly in the championship - Pelkas only played 5 games this season - Konstantelias best player with the ball and plays every week doesn’t start Core players like Bakasetas, Mantalos, Kourbelis and Pelkas have to be replaced. There is a core in this group that are not capable of taking Greece to the next level. Next coach has to see that. Defence and keeper did there job’s in both games. Can’t fault them for today’s loss. Questions have to be asked about the midfielders and attackers.

No Excuses... it doesn't get any easier than this All we had to do was beat Kazakhstan and Georgia to make the Euros. If we can't manage that then we haven't progressed at all. We were in a difficult group during the Euro campaign and we played two very good teams and finished 3rd call it what you want but we still failed to qualify. We had a second chance by winning the nations league but once again we failed. Winning the group means absolutely nothing if we cant beat Georgia in a one game playoff. Even though i have seen some signs of growth the inconsistency of brining it game in and game out is not there. Poyet has done some good things for sure but his ability to read the game and change the style of play when its not working out on the pitch is terrible. Poyet failed in the Euro campaign and failed at the nations league so really does he deserve to stay? Do we start all over again with a new coach and go down the same road we've been going down for 12 years of failure or do we stick it out and let them work it out and build on the chemistry? do we have enough trust that Poyet will shake things up with younger talent or will it just be the status quo. Such a disappointment, we were given a second chance a golden opportunity and once again we blew it and this time to Georgia in the playoffs NOT a team like Croatia which was our last closet chance to qualify under Skibbe. This one is going to hurt for a while.

When you’re putting on Bouchalakis while looking for a goal in extra time, you know you’re in trouble. Would have been nice to have Tzolis or Pavlidis come off the bench..

The season is over. Now we just need to make sure we end up in 3rd place at least. Considering we don't even have a proper striker, I would say this season did not go too badly up until this point. It could have been much worse. The only question is if we can secure European football next season. If we don't then it will be difficult to recruit good players.

We need a minimum of 4-5 players this Summer. A killer forward, two centre halves, a goalkeeper to replace the Kotarski in the event of him being sold and a replacement for Koulierakis (for the same reason).

I will be shutting down the Wiki area for maintenance. There are some issues that need immediate attention. Hopefully, it will be back and running within a week or two.

Congrats to them - they beat some good teams along the way. They were the only undefeated team in the tournament.

Strims.top

Χρόνια πολλά ΠΑΟΚάρα! It's our 98th "birthday" today!

First of all we need to finish in top 3 or Aris loses the cup final in order to be in Europe next season. Also there is dropping from higher competitions to lower competitions next season:

We are already set with 4 teams for next season (2024-2025). To have 5 teams in 2025-2026 Olympiakos need to beat Aston Villa twice (penalty shootouts don't count) and win the final either in regular time or extra time (again no penalty shootout)

He almost saved another - he looked calm during the entire time...

Olympiakos is through to the semifinal of Conference league after eliminating Fenerbahce on penalty kicks. Good turn of events as they are going to be more tired on Sunday, and also will have to play two difficult games in between Superleague games.

Let's face it. We lost to a much better team. We did not have any answers to their superior play. Time to focus on our last goal this season and that is the championship.

Starting linup:

Παίξτε μπάλα ρε κοπρόσκυλα! Πάρτε την πρόκριση για να μη σας πάρει ο διάβολος!!!

I sent this to our CT-based troubadour yesterday, but I can't resist putting it here for everyone's eyes. Mainly: what a weird article. What could they possibly be basing this on?? https://inpaok.com/817937/kati-xypnise-mesa-ston-misits/

Stefanos Tsitsipas won his third Rolex Monte Carlo Open and 11th single title overall to go with his 2 doubles titles, beating Norway's Casper Ruud 6-1, 6-4. He's got a good resume. Only player he has yet to defeat is Carlos Alcarez of Spain.

Considering how we played, a 1-0 defeat is actually a good result and the tie is well and truly alive. These poor performances are becoming a bit of a habit, the only positive is we seem to bounce back well so hopefully we see an improved performance in Thessaloniki from the boys. Like after the 1st leg vs Dinamo, I don't think we will be that toothless in attack for a 2nd straight game, especially at home. Brugge completely controlled the tempo of the game, their goal was like a training drill, there was never any pressure on the ball during the whole passage of play. They forced us to play slow when we had the ball, and we were more than happy to oblige and play with no energy or movement. Only times we looked threatening was with Taison on a few occasions. Whenever they wanted to, it seemed they could create a chance. Again not dissimilar to the Dinamo 1st leg, Brugge are not a defensive juggernaut we simply made them look so. If we put pressure on their defense (which is now missing half of its starters through suspension) we are good for a goal at Toumba. The week off will do us good, it's been a long season.

We lost 1-0 and 1/4 of Bruges is suspended for the Toumba match. We are going to *F U C K I N G D E S T R O Y* them. I cannot wait!

This popped up earlier today for me, thought I would share. There is some irony in this being thought of as a crisis, when you compare what has happened in Greece for a very, very long time now. Does not really come up with any real conclusions, but I can't say I blame them. Lots of theories going around (and I doubt the coronavirus lockdowns are a great explanation, considering we're nearly four years out from them). Tifo also did a piece of Savvidis back in 2018, after the incident that shall not be named. Weirdly, it spends basically no time on the actual incident.

Pretty good read, I agree with a lot of what is said in this article as it discusses the last few coaches including Poyet and what the teams needs going forward if any wants to give it a read. The Ethniki needs a cultural shift to a build a winner (hellasfooty.blogspot.com)

The cup final does not take place until SL season is over. I don't really worry about them. We play them at home, so they should not be a problem. My worries are AEK and how we can beat them.

For sure he could have lost the last match to France or both too Holland. It’s great that we tied France but when you have one game to beat Georgia to go to the Euros you have to win it end of story! Bakasetas has been much better under Poyet but did he even break a sweat last game I didn’t see it. Also taking a pen is what he excels at and he hit one of the worst penalties. Mantalos time is up too I think he should retire even though he was better than Bakasetas & Kourbelis vs Georgia. That midfield was crap until Siopis came in and made things happen. Still why did Poyet not play Konstantelias as the 10 instead of throwing him on the wing were he we did not touch the ball for long periods of time? We are talking about fing Georgia here not France or Spain. Let him go and take them on with his dribbling and creativity. Also no Tzolis wtf?? He is not as good as Pelkas? No Douvikas but Giakoumakis plays? Also subbing out Ioanidis for Giakoumakis I did not like for looming penalties and we saw what happened. No Pavlidis in either match who leads Dutch league in goals? Enough of all these clowns since Santos left! This is the most disappointing loss in our history! Things have to change!

nikh kai 3 bathmous

I'm with you man. He had so much time to prepare for Georgia, what's even more concerning is this to me was one of the worst performances I've seen under Poyet In a must win game. He hasn't done a good enough job to warrant a stay. He did the same thing in Holland when we got smoked 3-0 in a huge game for us in our fight for 2nd. Yes in between he does have the team pull off some good performances and did build some unity with the team but it means nothing when you lose to teams like Georgia to make the Euros. I'm done with seeing guys like Pelkas on the wing when we have so much better options, Or even guys like Mantalos. Bakasetas i can't really say anything negative as he's been our leading scorer and plays with heart but he can only give you so much and i think Poyet is asking him to do more than he's capable of. I'm not confident in a new coach either anymore as it just seems everyone that takes the job just keeps recycling the same players and hoping for a different result. Bottom line Poyet had one of his worst performances as a coach in the biggest game this team has had in years and he has failed. He needs to go.

Greece have the players to go to tournaments the problem is the last few managers leave them off the squad or force them into early retirement!

Personally I think the team has an identity crisis: We no longer have the "tsabouka" to be able to grind out 1-0 victories against all comers, as we did under Santos, and we definitely don't have the skill or killer instinct to take out a team like Georgia on our own terms....it's a loser mentality we are battling against. When you go out and show no urgency or determination as a team, you put yourself in a position to lose. Konstadelias, Fortounis, Tzolis, bla bla bla....none of them made or would have made a difference. The game was physical and we couldn't get past a group of mostly mediocre players, because that's what we have as well, only now we get shoved around way too easily. It was a game where everyone should have come out with both barrels blazing instead we reverted to the side/back passing and hesitation, where we looked like we were in need of a diaper change. The blame is mostly on the players because I'm pretty sure Poyet did not ask them to play like this. I imagine he told them to be careful with Kvaratskhelia and be careful not to get exposed on the counter but 1 chance in 120 min of football against Georgia is ridiculous. On a plus, this should be the end of the line for Tzavellas as he is simply taking up space. This being said, I am pretty sure Poyet will be gone, as EPO already tried to undermine him earlier and they are rubbing their hands getting ready for some kickbacks when they bring in the next sucker. There was an improvement again, just like under Van T'Schipp, but when the chips were down, the team fell flat on their faces. I don't think this can be fixed just by changing managers.

Spot on Dean everything you said! Greece had to score 1 goal and failed to do so to win this match its Georgia an average country but definitely not France or Holland to be afraid of. Our defence was fine but Poyet did not react in time too address the midfield until Kourbelis got injured then when Siopis came on we were much better. He had to make changes right at Halftime! No minutes for Tzolis what a joke! No Douvikas? Fortounis not good enough to play in this midfield? Left out of the loop because AEK have major control over EPO and Poyet. Tzavellas WTF is he doing there I thought he retired? Plus he gets a red card on sideline. One game vs Georgia. With Otto or Santos it would have been a done deal. Poyet failed we should be at Euros. Now he can go take some job in crappy England or the Ireland NT.

As you see favorable teams like Poland and Ukraine took care of business like they should, Greece had no excuse not to score at least one goal. Never should this match come to penalty kicks to determine who goes to EURO 2024. Greece is now 0-2 all-time in PK during meaningful matches.

I think we played well enough to win though. Pelkas was very good v Kazahkstan as was Kourbelis. In the end we had the best chance with Mavropanos header and we didn't take it. Manager can only do so much. Let me ask you a question. If Mavropanos header goes in does that change everything you said about Poyet? It really is a game of inches. Seriously Tsimikas is complete rubbish Im sorry with his basic skill errors he was by far our worst out there tonight. Vlachodimos could not get close to any of their penalties and they were all weak penalties. He has a lot to answer for as well.

Damn this sucks. Sometimes it's just not your time it was Georgia's time to go through today. I think playing at home for them they had just enough and hung on and won on the penalties m*****a.

Not surprised at all. In 2 yrs time it will be the same thing

In terms of importance arguably the worst loss in our history. We aren’t going to a WC obviously, our next semi decent chance (if that) is 8 years away. If anyone had said 2 years ago that all you had to do was beat Georgia to qualify for Euro you’d bite that persons hand off to be in that scenario and we still blew it.

Poyet has done a good job overall but today he messed it up and we could have used Fortounis cutting edge in the midfield. We came out strong vs France best team in the world and score 2 goals. This game vs an average team our team was timid from the start not like last game we’re they came out so strong. Bakasetas was playing to deep to give passes to the strikers. In the penalties it’s 50/50 but Bakasetas hits one of the worst penalties ever and Giakoumakis misses the target. We lose with Kvaratskhelia not even taking a penalty.

Poyet, pack your bags and F*** off!!!!!

One more title for PAOK Women's Handball team, repeating as the Greek Cup winner defeating Nea Ionia 26:22 in the final.