Round 2 of the Greek Super League saw traditional rivals PAOK and AEK share the points (1-1) in what was a scrappy and physical affair. Fellow giants, Olympiacos and Panathinaikos bagged maximum points against Xanthi and Panthrakikos respectively. Surprise packet Ergotelis continued their winning ways with a 3-0 win over Aris. In round 3, Aris will look to redeem themselves in front of their fanatical support in Saloniki, against Athens giants Panathinaikos. This is our match of the round. Matchday 2 Results
Iraklis Saloniki 1 - 1 OFI Crete
Xanthi Skoda 0 - 1 Olympiakos Piraeus
Panathinaikos 3 - 0 Panthrakikos
Panserraikos FC 0 - 1 Panionios
Asteras Tripolis 0 - 0 Larisa
Ergotelis 3 - 0 Aris Saloniki
Levadiakos 1 - 0 Thrasyvoulos
PAOK Saloniki 1 - 1 AEK Athens
Saturday, 20th September
Aris - Panathinaikos
Summary: This weekend sees Panathinaikos' turn to visit Thessaloniki to do battle with Aris, and will probably find it as tough as AEK did against PAOK on Matchday 2. In midweek, Panathinaikos suffered a 2-0 home defeat to Inter Milan in their first group match for the Champions League. Nonetheless, it was a spirited outing for Panathinaikos who fought hard throughout the 90 minutes with their only reward, a month layoff due to injury for Greek International midfielder Giorgos Karagounis. This match will be very physical as Aris attempt to turn their fortunes around after their loss to Ergotelis last week. Their chances will be boosted if midfielders Toni Calvo and Diogo Siston, both overcome their respective injuries in time.
Pick: LAY Aris (possible result 1-1)
Aris 1 - 2 Panathinaikos
Larissa - Skoda Xanthi
Summary: Larissa's start to the season so far has been a succesfull one. With a win at home on Matchday 1 followed by a good point away to Asteras Tripolis on Matchday 2, Larissa's fans will be hoping for more of the same against Skoda Xanthi this weekend. Positive news for Larissa is that defender, Stylianos Venetidis, and Belgian forward Mbo Mpenza, look to have overcome their injury worries in time to be fit for this fixture. In addition, striker Maciej Zurawski, is listed as 50/50 for this encounter. Larissa should be able to see off a shellshocked Skoda Xanthi who may still be licking their wounds after their loss last week to Olympiakos.
No pick (possible result 1-0)
Panthrakikos - PAOK
Summary: PAOK coach Fernando Santos will have a full squad to chose from, except for defender Marcos Antonio who is still undergoing physiotherapy. PAOK will look to gain momentum after a fairly good result last week at home to AEK which ended in a 1-1 draw. It is expected that PAOK will boss most of this game as Panthrakikos are still searching for their first point in the Greek Super league this season. Ex-Atalanta striker, Zlatan Muslimovic, will be looking to add to his tally after his debut goal last week for his new club.
Pick: PAOK to WIN (possible result 1-3)
Panthrakikos 0 - 1 PAOK Scorer: Muslimovic
Sunday, 21st September
Olympiakos - Panserraikos
Summary: After a very uninspiring but succesfull midweek UEFA Cup match against "Fair Play" entrants FC Nordsjaelland in Denmark, Olympiakos will look to make their fans happier with a much stronger performance against Panserraikos. Olympiakos talisman Djordjevic will still be missing from the Thrylos midfield and will almost certainly be replaced with Sebastian Leto. Panserraikos will be looking for the draw but the strength and morale of Olympiakos should easily see them through this game.
Pick: Olympiakos to WIN (possible result 2-0)
Olympiakos 4 - 1 Panserraikos
Ergotelis - Levadeiakos
Summary: Ergotelis seem like the early surprise package of the new season if results are anything to go by. Last week they handed Aris a 3-0 drubbing at Pankritio Stadium in Heraklion and this week does not seem to be any different against struggling Levadeiakos. Levadeiakos coach, Momcilo Vukotic, will have a full squad at his disposal and his charges will surely put up a good fight. Ergotelis though have started this campaign in a rich vein of form and despite the absence of midfielder Vasilios Koutsianikoulis due to injury, they should remain top of the league after the completion of Round 3. Once again, the most likely scorer in this match is Patrick Ogunsoto.
Pick: Ergotelis to WIN (possible result 2-0)
Ergotelis 1 - 1 Levadeiakos
AEK - Iraklis
Summary: Tough match for AEK in the Olympic Stadium as they will look to do better then last year's result against Iraklis in front of their fans. With the squad strengthened considerably in the off-season, AEK has yet to convince till this stage but new signings Agustin Pelletieri, Rafik Djebbour and Perparim Hetemaj will be looking to impress coach Giorgos Donis and push for a regular spot in the first 11. Iraklis have most of their players available including ex-Olympiakos striker Michalis Konstantinou. Whether that will be enough is highly doubtful as they will have to dig deep if they want a similar result to last year's surprise victory.
Pick: AEK to WIN (possible result 2-1)
AEK 1 - 0 Iraklis
Panionios - OFI
Summary: Despite the hassles this week between striker Lambros Choutos and the teams technical team, a bust up that saw the striker fined for his involvement, Panionios will have new Uruguayan duo Alvaro Recoba and Fabio Estoyanoff at their disposal. These two will look to get their new team's first win in front of their fans and put another dent in OFI's mediocre start to the season. After a loss to PAOK at home and a draw with Irakli in Heraklion, OFI is already looking like a team that will be battling to stay clear of relegation once more. OFI are also suffering on the injury front with Aleksandar Simic, Manolis Moniakis, Sinisa Gagula and Dimitris Arvanitis all doubtfull for the match.
Pick: Panionios to WIN (possible result 2-1)
Panionios 1 - 1 OFI
Thrasyvoulos - Asteras Tripolis
Summary: Thrasyvoulos coach Sakis Tsiolis spoke to the media after a recent training session to let them know of the importance to get a win in the first home game for his newly promoted side and to gain ground after 2 away losses to Larissa and Levadeiakos. Thrasyvoulous have doubts over trio Eystathios Karamalikis, Giorgos Poulakos and Carlos Marcora due to injuries. On the other hand, its all good news for Asteras Tripolis fans as they welcome back four players to their squad with Antonis Ladakis, Lucio Filomeno, Jaouad Zairi and playmaker Horacio Ramón Cardozo returning from injury and suspension respectively. Expect Thrasyvoulos to put up a battle but Asteras might just have enough to see off their challenge.
Pick: LAY Thrasyvoulos (possible result 1-2)
Thrasyvoulos 0 - 2 Asteras Tripolis
No comments:
Post a Comment