Panathinaikos’ heavy metal response to Lamia’s hard rock

Cardiologists must be present at Panathinaikos matches. Last year, the phenomenon of soul-destroying matches was more common and they had… two bouts. This year, when the “Greens” found a way to clean up most of the matches more easily (and with many goals), it happened only in the match against PAOK in Leovoros, where Jeremezhev “struck” in the 96th minute and it was repeated on Saturday evening (4/11) in Lamia, in the “craziest” match in this year’s Super League.

But Panathinaikos has a stronger winning mentality this season. Even on his “tough” nights and in games where he may not reach high performance standards, he has a way of getting what he wants on the field.

Lamia is very difficult to beat and confirmed in the match against Panathinaikos that its presence in the Premier League this year is no coincidence. Hardworking, strong, quality in midfield, and ignorant of danger, against every opponent.

He pushed the ‘Greens’ to their limits and didn’t really want to get into a crazy upset in the second half. But in the home team’s hard rock match, Panathinaikos “answered” with… Heavy Metal! He deposited on the field all the mental reserves that he had as a whole and as a team that he had worked on patiently for two and a half years.

He won a very important and valuable double thanks to the character of his players, but also because he learned never to give up. Even when the match data seems to be turning against him.

Manohos made a mistake when Arau was sent off in the 83rd minute, as he showed the second yellow card unnecessarily. Accordingly, he can rewatch the phase in which the home team complains about Jedvay’s control of Kyriakos Papadopoulos or the one in which the goalkeeper keeps Lamia Verbeek inside the penalty area with VAR Polychronis.

soccer

04 November 2023 at 19:29

The game went completely wrong in the second half for Panathinaikos, as they did not show the same intensity in their game and allowed Lamia – who was used to playing in red anyway at Fokoulou – to believe it and return to the field. match. The ‘Greens’ did not clean up the game when they had the chance and could have paid for it, if Tsiloulis had not been offside by a few centimeters or if Lamia’s midfielders had executed correctly in front of Brignoli.

He never stopped believing it

However, even with ten men at the end of the match, Panathinaikos’s response was shocking. He never stopped believing that he would find the goal (because that was how his coach taught him now) and he found it at the point where the opponent’s legs were cut off. In the nineties! With Sporar showing why he is (whatever anyone thinks) a top-class striker, as he gained excellent positioning in the box and sent the ball in as there was no way for Kosylev to get it back.

Half the goal certainly belonged to Bernard, the finest player at that moment on the pitch, who had the composure to raise his head and provide a first-class assist in an area that was… killing.

Sporar’s missed penalty kick in the ninth minute of added time didn’t spoil the big picture, but simply denied Panathinaikos the chance to make this double even more dominant. His value was enormous and that will show in the season’s economy, as each of the title contenders will measure his damage and losses.

Lamia once said, “Clover” did not laugh. Now he is raising his psychological state to the highest levels, to play a comprehensive match on Thursday (9/11) in Rennes to turn things around… in the battle to qualify for the Europa League group, after the defeat ten days ago. “The French are on the boulevard.