Super League Round 9 (08/11 - 09/11)

Matchday 8 saw the return of the big 3 to winning ways with Panathinaikos taking a 2-1 win away to Panionios, AEK stealing the win from Asteras Tripolis hands with two late goals in front of their fans with a 2-1 scoreline and Olympiakos defeating Ergotelis at the Karaiskaki Stadium by 2-0. PAOK could only manage a draw away to struggling Iraklis after the home side converted an early penalty. PAOK though was able to get back in the game and take a 1-1 draw. Xanthi and Panthrakikos were the only other winners with Xanthi defeating OFI away by 2-0 and Panthrakikos clinching a 1-0 victory over Thrasyvoulos. Levadeiakos and Panserraikos shared the spoils and so did Aris with Larissa both ending with 0-0 scorelines.


On to Matchday 9 then and some exciting games ahead starting off with Saturdays PAOK versus
Panionios clash in Toumba where PAOK will look to keep up with Olympiakos and Xanthi on the
Greek Super League ladder. The other Saturday matches are Panserraikos against OFI and Skoda
Xanthi versus AEK which should be a great battle between two teams that got good victories last week. Sunday kicks off with Asteras Tripolis versus Panthrakikos and Thrasyvoulos versus Aris and continues with another tough match between Ergotelis hosting Larissa followed by Iraklis versus Levadeiakos. Match of the week is hands down the derby between rivals Panathinaikos versus Olympiakos... Enjoy!

Matchday 8 Results
Levadiakos 0 - 0 Panserraikos
Aris Salonika 0 - 0 Larissa
Panionios 1 - 2 Panathinaikos
OFI Crete 0 - 2 FC Xanthi
Panthrakikos 1 - 0 Thrasivoulos
AEK Athens 2 - 1 Asteras Tripoli
Iraklis 1 - 1 PAOK Salonika
Olympiacos 2 - 0 Ergotelis

Saturday, 8th November
Panserraikos - OFI

Summary: Fellow strugglers Panserraikos and OFI face off this week knowing that 3 points in matches such as this are very important to avoid the relegation drop. Panserraikos managed a point last week on their travels to Levadeiakos (0-0) while OFI lost at home by a 2-0 scoreline against Xanthi which brought the end to manager Frantisek Straka who was fired from the OFI managerial position a few days later. Midfielders Poul Adado and Aurellien Collin will both be out due to injuries while doubtful is defender Robert Petrov. OFI's interim coach Pavlos Adamos will have a full squad with only a doubt over Argentinian striker Esteban Jose Herrera who was injured during Thursdays training session.

Pick: OFI +0,0.5 (possible result 0-1)
Panserraikos 1 - 2 OFI

PAOK - Panionios

Summary: PAOK took a point away last weekend against Iraklis (1-1) conceding only from the penalty spot early in the match only for defender Stilianos Malezas to equalize for PAOK in the 71st minute while Panionios was defeated at home by Panathinaikos by a 2-1 scoreline. Paninios will look to turn things around this weekend then and with only absentee being Ghanaian midfielder Bennard Yao Kumordzi, German coach Ewald Lienen will have a near full squad to choose from. PAOK Stefanos Athanasiadis makes his return to the team while captain Pantelis Konstantinidis and midfielder Vieirinha will be out with injuries.

Pick: Panionios +0.5 (possible result 1-1)
PAOK 2 - 0 Panionios

Skoda Xanthi - AEK

Summary: An other tough match for AEK this week against Xanthi after last weeks 2-1 win versus Asteras Tripolis where AEK left it very late with two goals near the end thanks to Daniel Majstorovic (89') and Rafik Djebbour (90+) to delight their fans. Xanthi also had a good outing with a win away to OFI where substitute striker Dimitris Souanis scored two goals to seal a victory that sent Xanthi into second place behind current leaders Olympiakos. Xanthi will have defender Giannis Papadimitriou returning to the squad while left back Stavros Tziortziopoulos might be also be ready for the match. Out due to injury for Xanthi are Brazilian strikers Avendano and Maciel. AEK will be without Sotiris Kyrgiakos, Panagiotis Tachtsidis and Michalis Pavlis but will be happy to see midfielders Pantelis Kafes and Angelos Basinas both in the squad.

Pick: Xanthi DNB (possible result 2-1)
Xanthi 1 - 1 AEK

Sunday, 9th November
Panathinaikos - Olympiakos

Summary: Both clubs come into this Sundays derby with wins from Matchday 8 with Panathinaikos defeating Panionios 2-1 away and Olympiakos getting a 2-0 win in front of their home crowd against Ergotelis. Panathinaikos will feel the more confident of the two sides not only because of the home advantage but also thanks to the mid-week 3-0 trouncing of Werder Bremen away in the Champions League. Panathinaikos does have a gdecent record at home but does seem to concede a few too many goals while Olympiakos has been fairly average on their away travels. Panathinaikos coach Ten Cate is expected to field a similar squad to that that faced Werder Bremen mid-week while they will also have available midfielder Andreas Ivanschitz who could play a role in the squad but most likely as a substitute. Sotiris Leontiou and Sotiris Ninis will not be available due to injury. Olympiakos will be without defender Paraskevas Antzas who does not seem like recovering on time for the crucial match and young striker Konstantinos Mitroglou.

Pick: Draw (possible result 1-1)
Panathinaikos 0 - 0 Olympiakos

Iraklis - Levadeiakos

Summary: Struggling Iraklis will be facing Levadeiakos this weekend managerless as they have yet to name a replacement after the sacking of Angel Pedraza. First team coach Borrell will be the stand in until a manager is appointed. Both come into the match with home draws from last weekends action with Iraklis taking a good point at home against PAOK (1-1). Levadeiakos is known to concede goals away from home but can possibly come out with a point from the match. Iraklis striker Michalis Konstantinou and midfielder Serge Die are doubtful for the match while defender Anastasios Katsambis will not be included in the squad due to a knee injury. Levadeiakos only has good news in the injury department with Borislav Georgiev and Fernando Machado returning to the squad while doubtful are defender Michalis Kapsis and Eduardo Ariel Montoya.

Pick: Levadeiakos +0.5 (possible result 0-0)
Iraklis 1 - 0 Levadeiakos

Asteras Tripolis - Panthrakikos

Summary: Asteras Tripolis was left heartbroken after conceeding two late goals at AEK (2-1) last weekend. Asteras led the game till the 89th minute only to see the match slip away in in just 4 minutes. Panthrakikos on the other hand reached mid table to 8th place thanks to a 1-0 home win against Thrasyvoulos. Asteras Tripolis have two players absent for the home match with Jean Carlos Donde and Fabio Felicio out due to injuries. Abdul Diallo, Ludovic Clement, Aleix Vidal and Emanuele Troise are doubtful while closer to a return to the first teamfor Panthrakikos are Xenofon Gittas and Okan Yilmaz.

Pick: Asteras Tripolis to Win (possible result 2-1)
Asteras 0 - 0 Panthrakikos

Ergotelis - Larissa

Summary: It has been nearly two months since Ergotelis has produced a win at home and this could be the case once more if opponents Larissa have anything to do with it. Larissa has a great record away from having yet to lose a single match (1W 3D 0L). Ergotelis will be with a near full squad as Eleftherios Gialousis has returned to full training while doubtful is midfielder Gernot Plassnegger and Labros Kefaloukos. Larissa has a few players missing with that of Mbo Mpenza, Dino Seremet, Stylianos Venetidis, Walter Matias Iglesias, Naim Aarab and Laurent Robert.

Pick: Draw (possible result 1-1)
Ergotelis 2 - 1 Larissa

Thrasyvoulos - Aris

Summary: A draw against Larissa (0-0) at home for Aris wasn't the worst of results for a team who is slowly starting to find their feet. Aris will try to hit out at Thrasyvoulos who are coming into the match this weekend after a 1-0 away loss to Panthrakikos. For Thrasyvoulos then doubtful are Luis Alves and Efstathios Rokas while Aris wil travel without defenders Kristi Vangjeli, Efthimios Koulouheris and midfieldres Alejandro Delorte, Diogo Rodrigues Siston, Roberto Battion. All will depend on the form of striker Javito on the day as he will be looking to add to his four goal tally this season.

Pick: Aris to Win (possible result 0-2)
Thrasyvoulos 1 - 2 Aris