Finally got to watch the game in full. Overall, I think we played very "correct". There is no way we were ever going to go to Italy and play Fiorentina off the park. Fiorentina are a stronger side, and when you know this, you have to play accordingly. Try and limit your opponents opportunities, apply pressure as much as possible, be clinical with your counter attacks ... and hope for the best. Fiorentina are quite a physical team, and there were times when they bumped our boys off the ball like they were kids. At the same time, they were cynical with their fouls quite a few times and with another referee they could have had more yellow cards.
We created multiple opportunities. 5 or 6 very good ones. The 1st goal by Shakhov to be fair his finish was kind of weak, but the team did the "right things". Campos had the ball outside the box and Fiorentina didn't apply pressure. Sin 101 in football allowing the opposition to shoot freely outside your box. Campos as he should hit the shot. Keeper parried and Shakhov, as he should, was already in the box. If you do the right things, goals can happen. Same again with the post by Rodrigues when it was 1-0. This was due to 3 players pressing high and forcing the turn over. Rodrigues had a sitter as well from 6 yards out which he really should have scored. The 2nd goal again was good work. Good cross by Rodrigues and Djalma did the right thing by reading the play and running hard to get into position to give an option in the box. If you do the right things. The 3rd goal was just Rodrigues being a one man army. Kind of similar to the one he missed in Thessaloniki at the end of that game. Ultimately, Rodrigues was awesome and I'm afraid to think how much weaker we'll be without him.
Regarding Fiorentina they had their chances too. The shot outside the box that hit the cross bar and post. The shot that crashed off the cross bar. Their 1st goal was good play and they definitely deserved a goal by that stage. What about that Babacar! I'd give my left nut to have a player like that at PAOK. He's a monster. Fiorentina were just bombing the ball to him and he'd control it, layoff, like Crespo weighed 10 kilos. His goal was a real striker's goal. The 1st goal came from his work as well. Fiorentina had lots of other "half" chances and were definitely threatening with Chiesa on the right flank but that's soccer for you.
In general we played very deep and compact. Once we lost possession we'd become very compact at the back and even Matos and Leovac would tuck in towards the middle. Ivic had obviously instructed the team to defend this way and I guess he didn't want the Fiorentina wingers getting in behind the defence.
My only disappointment was that we couldn't retain the ball a bit better. When you're 2-0 up that's when you should be able to start playing a bit of keepings off with the opposition but it just goes to show the class difference between the GSL and Serie A. We definitely don't have the midfield to do this.
It's odd that Brkic was selected for this match (was Glykos injured ?) but he did well. Can't really fault him for the goals. Matos and Leovac did all right. Both played very defensively. Varela and Crespo did well. Crespo struggled with Babacar but to be fair Babacar is an animal physically. Crespo overall has been an excellent signing for us. Canas and Cimirot ran a lot in the middle and did good work applying pressure. Shakhov did all right. Up front Djalma made himself available and took some pressure off, did all right. Rodrigues was man of the match. Koulouris actually did quite well. Ran a lot and tried to apply pressure when possible.