CHE21QNS

We had the game at the fan club. I'll go more into detail later but all I can say is EKANE MPAM from before the game even started that 4-3-3 was not the right line up. Della as expected went into the second half making NO changes to the line up. We got lucky to score 0-1. Paok took back control and instead of balancing things out while we were still ahead he waits till the 75th minute to take out anakoglou and change the formation.

Looks like he's going with the 4-3-3...lets hope it works out and Anakoglou steps up today. If it doesn't I hope Della makes the appropriate changes quickly and doesn't wait till the 80th to do something.

PAAOOKKKK MPINNEEEEE MHZEREEE p******SSS GIEEEE!!! MHA ZWHH THA SASS GAMAMEEEE KAI DEN THA ALAKSH AFTO POTEEEEE!!!! Pame AEKARA!

Actually the AEK fan club in Astoria has a streaming service with NOVA. Im not 100% sure if theyll stream the game but when I find out ill let you guys know.

There is one wild card to this formation but Idk how I feel about the 4-3-3 for a few reasons: 1. We're pretty much going to bet on a counter attack to seal a 0-1. I think that is dangerous when you're playing a team that throws so many players into the midfield and in such a chaotic atmosphere. Unless we work to 100% efficiency I feel like a slip up is inevitable and the longer we stay in our half the higher the chance is. 2. Vargas has a gas tank of about 60-65 minutes right now, Buonannotte has only started one game with us thus far, and Aravidi can get isolated quickly if the players around him get closed down or run out of gas. Not to mention that in the 4-3-3 the wide players have to do a lot more running to cover for a more narrow midfield and attacking scheme. 3. I say its better to go into this with a balanced line up that will look them in the eyes and be just as able to attack their 3 cb's from the wings in order to take advantage of their weak spots. Look at their right side for instance. If Galo can get passed Rodriguez I'm fairly confident that him and Platella can pull Tzavella to the wing and make him their bitch. However the wild card in the 4-3-3 is Anakoglou. If he is on his a game and is able to move around and distribute to his full potential then he might be able to provide a helpful link between our defense and offense. He has the ability to add more fluidity to our game, but again if he's on an off day and there is more pressure on Simoes and Johanson to be more defensive then our team is pretty much split in half on the field. Idk if thats the type of game I want us to play in Toumba.

I'd say one of the biggest problems in Greece has been not the left, but the lack of left. Meaning everyone wants the "left" but they've never actually gotten to see what its all about (not that most ever have) or at least have never acknowledged its faults, as they always find a scapegoat. It's all speculation on what this "dream world" would, could, should, and possibly look like. They want solutions without actually being the ones to solve anything and so this anti-government entity is supposed to miraculously show up and ironically "govern" the country towards universal equality. But the type of equality that only protects their own of course. The left wing parties have done a great job of milking the system by distancing their ideology from positions of criticism, enough to still fuel this dream world they all live in, and their ideology. For example: - KKE had the ability to rule side by side with another leftist party but refused, as their "morals" don't allow for them to be a part of the "system". Thus they keep this little leftist myth alive and the same 5%-7% continues to vote for them. In their minds KKE has never F***ed up (since they've never ruled) and so their ideology can continue to live unscathed. - Syriza comes into power, completely give in to the worst mnimonio of them all, and our borders have turned into a third world free for all. They blame the conditions with which they had to negotiate and take personal "responsibility" for the last 6 months BUT leftism remains unscathed. Tsipra absorbs all the blame while ultra leftism takes none. There is no mention of how their populist policies, fueled by their own ideologies harmed the economy more than Samara.There is no mention of how the "workers united" ideology has fueled them to completely neglect our borders. After all the big bad Europeans didn't allow us to truly implement a leftist "system" and so just like the KKE myth, the dream stays alive. - What about PASOK ? Especially the populist PASOK of Andrea Papandreou? "Naaaa, their a CENTER left party. They don't count." Didn't his, "Us against the system!" rhetoric harm the country, as everyone was just looking for ways to steal from the system and government? "NOOO, He was CENTER left remember? not really left, its different when you're really left." So in essence the word center acts as a defense mechanism for the defenders of the "dream" In essence everyone has made it a habit to point towards the Junta as a "proven" example of a failed right wing period in Greek history. But no one acknowledges any of the faults that have been created by leftism as there is always an excuse as to why we haven't really seen this dream system or anti-system, or what ever the F*** it really is (i dont even think they know wtf it is) , fully implemented. And so the majority of the Greek population is split into 2 groups: 1. The Dreamers: The group that truly believes in this Utopian workers paradise, without boarders, classifications, taxes, evil corporations, and big bad governments. This group is usually poor, disillusioned, and desperate. They're the people who join the social media buzz about "the couple who quit their office jobs to travel the world" but don't bother to read that the couple cleans toilets for a living (to pay for a place to stay at night) and walk endless miles a day because they can't afford transportation. They are more interested in a messiah than a leader. They're so tired and drained that they just want to believe that a new anti-system establishment can overhaul the old one without a fight, and that society will be healed without work. So they continue to vote for the politician with the biggest promises and the most enticing, untested, ideology. 2. The Dream Creators: The group that benefits from the "dream". This group includes your politicians, unions, and public sector workers. This group hopes the dream stays alive because the longer it is alive, the longer they get their fat pensions, paychecks, and unemployment compensation. These are the people who are for a "united world of workers", as long as they don't personally have to do the work and as long as they're still being payed of course. They're the one's telling Group 1 how important the anti-establishment movement is, while they get paid directly by the establishment! This is the group that Tsipra and every Tsipra appeases and in return his party gains votes and another mouth to spread the word of wisdom, towards a different, better Utopia. And so the result of this food chain of dreamers and dream "creators" is a Syriza government who went to negotiate with Europe, and the second they mentioned cutting public sector jobs and salaries, Syriza disrupted all negotiations, and sent Europe into a 6 month long spiral of failed discussions and 'he said she said' accusations. They brought back their weapon and most devout pawns in spreading the word about their dream world; the media, aka ERT. Then after SIX MONTHS of defending their pawns so fanatically, money and time ran out so what did Syriza do?........................Throw the entire f###ing private sector under the bus in a matter of A WEEK. Unfortunately these poor souls who have no way of paying for their business expenses and workers, who's checks were bouncing for weeks, and who are now being taxed 23%, have no choice but to continue voting for the "dream" as that is all they have left. The golden children of the public sector however, remain untouched. PS. This is in no way a post showing preference for the right wing as they did their fare share of f###ing up to add fuel to the leftist, pseudo-utopian, ideologies we find our selves facing today.

^Agreed! Arava is wasted on the wing.

One of my favorite AEK videos on Youtube

It looks terrible man. Too much white. Too much going on. Those weird lines on the sleeves, collar and bottom look awkward and the back witht he pleather around the numbers is just nauseating. I thought puma was bad but this kid is up there.

As timid and terrible as Olympiako looked out there today all I can say are two things: 1. Bayern looked even worse for a team with that kind of budget. They are limp without Robben. Not, inspiring, empty runs, empty crosses, ridiculous shots.....I really wasn't impressed. If it wasn't for that lucky Muller goal to open up Olympiako the game would of probably came down tot he wire. 2. HOLYY SHITTTTT are those Olympiako kits fugly. I'd say easily their worst jersey ever and thank god we have Nike and not puma OR Adidas. For gods sake the shirt has PLEATHER on it. It looks like parts have red electrical tape on them. Looks like something out of a rap music video. WTF were they thinking? Also some things I noticed about Olympiako today: - Pardo isn't as good as I thought he would be, and in all honesty he kind of looks overweight. - Hernani in the last few minutes I saw him looks like hell be a bit of a threat. - Kasami looks a little out of it too, and Masuaki is very mistake prone and not as sharp as he was last year. - Dominguez pretty much has a gas tank for 45 minutes, which is something we should exploit. Overall the game wasn't the slaughter fest that the scoreline indicates but at the same time I thought the gauro would come out and put up a fight rather than play a 10-0-0 lineup.... Also I would like to see this Avatar bet between the two of you and now that we are on the topic, Reaper , what exactly is your avatar?

I too put a lot of trust in Simoes and Johanson. If those two can shut down Pelka, their team will be severely limited in terms of creativity. We just can't get closed in our defensive 3rd or else our inexperience in a tough edra can be tested. As long as Simoes and Johanson clean up and keep the battle in the midfield we are good. Haha if you shut down their midfield and take Pelka out of the mix their stuck with Tzioli's long balls to the front. I say we go into this game humble and feel them out. If they let us control the game and we win the midfield early on then we should take it, but if we see them come out overzealous I say we play it defensive, wait for them to commit too many players forward and wait for that one magic spark from Diego, Mandalo, Vargas, or Barbosa to hit them on the counter. Thats really all we need. This match is going to be won purely on tactics as we will rarely play teams that field 3 CB's in the SL, so its important to create a tactic specifically for mpaok. I really can't even predict what we are going to see for this game but I think we can come out of there with a 0-1.

@ Banana- With paok's formation i think its much more likely that paok can cop 3-4 goals as you guys are throwing a lot of players forward. Only thing working against us would be inexperience. I actually like that line up too, but like you said I think it can only work with Cordero. Anakoglou is a great player but his versatility has been a little hit or miss and most of the times he hasn't impressed when put in a 'dekari' role. Will be interesting when we get Cordero fully ready. I agree with everything everyone else has posted. @Greekfreak, honestly, In a perfectly fair environment I don't know if we would outright win the league and its only because of my doubts regarding our CF position. I was watching the gauro game and they're definitely better than last year. Dominguez doesn't seem to be slowing down, and indeye actually looks good. We can definitely contend though. We'll see what they're really made of when we play them. Lets see if its the usual song and dance.

I'm eager to talk about the PAOK game and Dikefalo is our matchday man so I say we discuss our opponent here until we get closer to derby day. I think PAOK is one of the trickier teams in the league. So far this season they have been fielding 3 CB's and making changes to their mid and front lines. So they've switched between 3-4-3, 3-1-4-2 and 3-5-2. Up until today it didn't seem like they had found a solid formation or lineup that worked consistently for them. I guess that works to our advantage as we've pretty much been fielding the same formation and line up (with small single position changes) consistently since August. From everything I've seen from mpaok this year, they commit a lot of men forward and their attack comes mostly through the middle, while they let Pelka and Mak roam all around the pitch in the front. Those two players are the only players that really worry me (and Berbatov of course), especially Pelka. The kid had been on fire and is a huge talent. I think its important that we play Didac for this match to force their players further into the middle where I think Simoes and Johanson will eat them alive. Their attacks are going to get really congested with our line up, as I see a lot of clashes between their mids and our DM's. Within the confines of Dellas' tactics I want to see: ---------------------Arava------------------------ Barbosa------Buonannotte-------------Platella -----------Johanson---------Simoes-------------- Didac----------------------------------------Galo -----------Kolovetsio-----Tzanetopoulo------- --------------------Baroja----------------------------- In a fantasy world we can possible field a 4-4-2 rombo......but Simoes and Johanson are too good to leave either of them on the bench but for the sake of fun F*** it (based off of today's appearance) . I think a 4-4-2 would be a good way to put more pressure on their defense and is definitely more risky but has higher reward if our players are on a good day. -------------------------Arava------------------------ ------------------Mantalo/Vargas--------------------------------- ------------------------Buonnanotte---------------------- Barbosa-------------------------------------Platella --------------------------Simoes----------------------------- Didac------------------------------------------Galo ----------------Kolove--------Tzane------------------------ ----------------------Baroja---------------------------------- I think at some point were going to have to start playing 4-4-2 diamond against weaker opponents to make up for lack of an in form CF right now but I think its too soon to use it on such a strong opponent in the league like mpaok.

@ Amorgo, I think people are too harsh on players like Soiledi. Soiledi creates a lot from the left. Even if his precision isn't always the best, he brings the ball up and puts his teammates in dangerous positions. On the defensive end he was never strong but he's definitely improving and you can see his effort. One of his issues is that he has such a thirst for getting into the attacking play that he sometimes loses his position on the field and that could cost us against a dangerous flank. On good days Soiledi has the potential to be great, the only issue is that the coach has no way of knowing when Soiledi is going to give us another bam game and even when he is off, it isn't big enough a problem to substitute him as we have bigger problems on the pitch (like scoring) which demand changes in the front of the line up. I'd like to add that Galo has been very stable thus far and I love his style of play. What a great spark of creativity to have form your RB and the way him and Platella interchange roles and overlap one another has been great thus far. I would hate to be Della when Mpakaki comes back into the lineup. If they are both performing at their best though it comes down to 2 things. Mpakaki is both four years younger and Greek, but shittt Galo is going to make it hard for him to get his position back. I'd love to see this but at the same time I really can't see Platella being benched right now especially going into a game like toumpa. Platella is one of those players who you know will bleed for you out there every night and even more so knowing the significance of the Dikefalo derby. None of our star three are 100% ready. Not to mention that Platella and Galo have been teaming up well on the right. I'd love to say that 2 of our 3 stars are going to play as well but after today's performance by Barbosa, he just made things a lot harder for Della. Unless we change the formation completely I think the only change we see really is Aravidi in for Chrisantus, and possibly Didac in for Soiledi.

The things we walk away with today are: -Buonnanotte obviously- the guy is class!!!!! When he is in form he has the ability to help us forget Scocco. This guy is going to make a difference this year and will help hide the hole up front with his talent. He literally turned the game around in just a few minutes, can you imagine what he'll be doing when in form and when the team has gelled? - The PAS goal i think was partly our defense's fault, but a big factor was also Baroha. It wasn't an impossible save. I think its important for both Baroja and Anesth to realize that no one takes the jersey home. - FINALLY the old Barbosa made an appearance again. This is what I've been waiting for ever since the end of last season where he started losing his form. We can sit here and s%$#! on the guy as much as we want and come out and bitch like the AEK365 crowd does but at the end of the day when Barbosa is up to par the entire team looks better. He is the type of player who like today in his assist to Buonnanotte, can change the game with one magic pass. - As far as Chrisantus goes. The guy knows how to play. You can tell he has talent just by the moves that he makes on the field. The way he distributes the ball without getting in the way of the play, or the way he moves off the ball. But once he gets the chance he shits on himself when it matters. When the games are low risk he scores with ease it seems but soon as the pressure is on he starts to lose his cool and you can see it by the way he nervously laughs. During his first missed chance to score I actually really felt sorry for the guy. He did everything right, he created spaces, passed the ball in nice triangle plays with his teammates, and then soon as he's getting into position to score he gets the finishing pass too quickly and misses the goal by a split second. Then on the header, which again he should of scored as it was perfectly placed, he got too eager and hit the ball too soon. I really don't think he as talentless as some make him out to be but at the same time you've been on the squad for months now and you still haven't given us a sense of stability. When considering he's one of the highest paid players on the squad he needs to get his psychological s%$#! together and start playing up to par with what he's capable of or else not getting a bam CF is going to put some strain on our midfield to pick up the slack, as they have been doing up until now. - VARGAS! He can't pull out a full 90' yet but as his form gets better he is going to be hugee. Since the minute he came on he was destroying PAS and he was going to do what ever it took to score. - MANTALOS- thats all I'm going to say. If you consider how effective we were against the same PAS that hammered mpaok two weeks ago, then you realize that the team really is good. Also Ksanthi got the away win against Atromito today, so truth be told they really are a tough team this year who can give any team in the league a hard time. I think mpaok is for the taking. Berbatov is not ready yet and even if he was I doubt he would of gelled with his teammates by the time we play them. Aside from their home advantage, their squad doesn't scare me all that much but at the same time we've only played in an away atmosphere like toumba one time in the last two years (tigani in the cup) so that is going to be a big factor. But this squad has a lot of balls and a lot of talent, and nothing would give me a bigger kavla than seeing them go into toumba and tiki taka their asses till they're dizzy hahaha

Our midfield spits fireeeee!!!!!!!!!

Who else thinks we would of put this away with a real CF?

The entire petalo gets in for free.

Pretty much, you had the chance to go all the way and you skimped right at the end....Stupid stingy move that int he end paid for itself leaving us looking like idiots.

Just wanted to mention this. Lafferty on a scoring spree and Berbatov basically paid for himself through shirt sales+ sponsorship deals (I'm sure there were more season ticket sales too) within the first week of getting to PAOK. If you get stingy you make these mistakes.

Did I just read that Tzioli is more useful than Mantalo? Based off of what? Have you seen Mantalo play? Or are you judging him off of one game where he wasnt that bad and the team was s%$#! in general? Also Mantalo is an AM/CM , Tzioli is a DM....mh lete oti na'nai Also Aravidi and Kareli were both out of position and when they attempted to make moves into the box they were pretty much negated by mitroglous terrible movements. Some of you need to become around the clock fans, because it seems watching only the national team every 6 months has left you behind a bit. A lot of emotional apocalyptic posts in here since the game. Id say that 1789's last post is the most spot on. The team is young and we have a lot of potential. Now as long EPO get their act together and hire a capable coach, who they will allow to do his job without backstage politics, then better days are ahead.

Reaper, I think you are being harsh on both Kareli and Christodoulopoulo. The former having a tragic performance today but he is without a doubt one of the better offensive Greeks today. The latter hasn't been ground breaking but in most of his appearances he has added quality and a small creative spark the team has lacked. What makes me angry about this team is that when players like Mitroglou were on fire and carrying the squad along with Nini (Isreal match being the last big example of this) the team didn't use them. Now that he's in essence a former soccer player they've let him keep the starting jersey. Its as if this team waits for a player's fire to go out only to force feed them to us. I think Mitroglou as well as an overall lack of offensive options have been the main issue on this team and its been long overdue for Mitroglou's ass to get some splinters. At times he's good with the ball at his feet, he can still hold the ball, but the guy doesn't have the hunger and tenacity he once did. Arividi was hungry today but when you combine the fouls he was getting, the confusion in attack, and the fact that left winger is not his position, the guy was a non factor. For me its simple, throw fetfa on the left, bench Mitroglou, let Aravidi get a shot at CM. In addition take out Tzioli (permanently), put in Kone to the right, pull back Samari, and we would of seen a different match out there today. 4-1-3-2 and you would of been able to properly attack them, not half ass an effort and cause massive ###### confusion. We were playing BOTH WINGS with players who weren't playing their natural positions. No wonder we got zero out of our wings and anything that came to the center of the final third turned into one big cluster F***. ----------------Aravidis--------------------------- -------------------------Karelis------------------- Fetfa------------Fortounis----------------Kone ----------------Samaris----------------------------------- Cholebas-----------------------Anyone but Vyntra -------Pap-----------------Pap------------------- ----------------Karnezi----------------------- ^^this makes much more sense to me.

I don't understand what it is about Fetfa and he is taken for granted by almost every coach we've seen within the Greek league and National team. As for the players who played: The only players out there were our CB's, Cholebas, and Fortouni. - Kareli, Vyntra, and Tzioli were tragic. Kareli under-performed while Vyntra and Tzioli don't have a place on a national team. - Aravidi, Mitroglou, and Samari were non-existent. The team lacks some serious passion and the subs were a complete joke, making no sense.

So hyped to see Arava start!!!!! PAME MWRH ARRWSTIAAA!

I have to admit seeing how the paokia welcomed Berbatov and seeing what he stated walking into Toumpa made me feel a tad bit jealous, knowing that we probably had a decent chance at signing him. Compare the panic and hype that took place when he walked on to the pitch compared to the ksenera and booing when Djebbours name is called. Compare that to the ksenera of seeing Chrisantus laughing like an idiot when he botches opportunities. I feel great about our squad and I'm happy with the signings we made but a good signing up front would of really been the icing on the cake that we needed, to really say "Hrthame". Instead you see a general ksenera among our fans.