Apr
13
This is the first time in many years that the Greek Super League title will be decided at the very last game of the season. Two of the three largest clubs in Greece are within 2 points of each other with Olympiakos (67 points) in first place and AEK in second place (65 points.)
Many expect Olympiakos to win the title yet again making it 11 titles in the last 12 seasons. This is the first time in years that AEK has been in competition for the league title this late in the season. The addition of Brazilian superstar Rivaldo who until last year we playing for Olympiakos certainly helped the Athenian club to rise higher than rivals Panathinaikos.
Interestingly, both teams fired their coaches less than two months ago and currently have interim coaches as owners wait for the end of the season to hire more experienced personnel. Olympiakos fired well liked coach Takis Lemonis shortly after the team’s loss to Chelsea for the round of 16 in Champions League. This move surprised many consider that under Lemonis’ guidance Olympiakos had one of their best years in European competition while at the same time remained at the top of the Greek Super League and are also in the quarter finals for the Greek cup. AEK fired their coach who failed to keep the team motivated while speaking foolishly to the media; it was definitely not am amicable end for the two sides.
The Super League will come to an end next Sunday, April 10th. Both AEK and Olympiakos play at home. The former will be hosting Asteras Tripolis which has been the surprise team of the season. Asteras is a small club with no superstar players and yet has so far managed to climb to the 5th place in the Super League. AEK are definitely in for a huge battle as the latter are going to be working hard in order to earn a spot for the UEFA cup next season.
Olympiakos will battle against Northern Greek club Iraklis which will be coming to Karaiskakis stadium with lots of momentum after defeating Apollon Kalamarias 5-2 today at Kaftanzoglio Stadium. There is no room for error for the Piraeus club as only a win can guarantee their 11th title in the last 12 years. Expect Iraklis to put up a good fight making this the more interesting game to watch for next week. Olympiakos will be missing the services of left winger and captain Predrag ?or?evi? (he has played for Olympiakos since 1996 and he has been a central player for the team since the early days and has contributed greatly in making his team one of the most successful Greek clubs) who received 2 yellow cards in the game against Skoda Xanthi today; Olympiakos won the game with the very emphatic 4-1 score.