Match Review: AEK vs. PAO

We lined up like this:

Blanco
Edinho——-Scocco

Rikka—–Pilatsikas
Basinas

Juanfran——-Ramos-Silva
Krygiakos–Majstorovisc

Saja

Lagos went in for Edinho in the 65th, Kafes went in for Pilatsikas in the 87th, and Alexopolous went in for Scocco in the 90th.

Donis knows what he is doing. The 4-3-3 worked well for us. We dominated the first twenty minutes with fast runs, quick, neat passing and an alert and imposing defensive line that played as a unit. Then Edinho, alone, moved nearer the box, the ball gingerly at his feet, one touch, two touches, a look, and then he let it rip. Surprisingly, thankfully, we were up 1-0.

We sat back at little then, and let PAO bring the game to us, which they did for twenty minutes. But our defense did its job. Kyrgiakos and Majstorivisc formed the center back pairing that we hoped they would, clearing the line, dominating in the air. With Saja behind them and Basinas in front, our spine was strong. Ramos-Silva was everything we all hoped he would be last years. Amazing what some decent coaching can do.

But credit is due to the midfield. Even the best defense breaks down without decent cover. And with just three in the midfield, one could fairly be concerned. But they did fine, Basinas tucked behind Rikka and Pilatsikas; they interrupted play with hard tackles and smart picks and sticks. They distributed well and covered space and initiated the attack. Pilatsikas, the least hyped of the three, deserves particular credit. He played like eight men; he was all over the pitch; he was not afraid to mix it up.

Forty minutes into the match, we began to reassert ourselves, probing here, pushing there. Edinho made a move, then another, then he was moving into the box again. Blanco saw him, the ball flew, and two Panathinaikos defenders smothered Edinho in the box, one holding his jersey on the way down and while on the ground for good measure. They knew to get this man down. But the linesman saw it, and Blanco easily buried the penalty kick. 2-0. Then the half. Breathing a bit easier now, happy to see my team, so easily and unceremoniously dumped from the UEFA Cup earlier in the week by a Cypriot site, playing world class football again, beating a team with five times their transfer budget. But there were 45 minutes left. We’d lost Rivaldo to some obscure team from Uzbekistan earlier in the week while Panathinaikos had earlier in the Summer signed Gliberto Silva, a Brazilian and Arsenal star who had not asserted himself yet but surely would.

But we did hold on. At the 90 minute mark, it was still 2-0. Over the last half hour, Donis had removed a forward and put another midfielder on. He’d replaced a dogged Pilatsikas with a fresh Kafes and now was removing another forward to put a third center-back in. Smart stuff.

PAO’s Karagounis snagged a late consolation goal when his extra time free kick caught Saja a bit flat footed. But no matter. Today, despite all expectations, we were the better team.

Rivaldo was in the stands. He seemed relaxed but every time the camera cut to him he wasn’t watching the game but rather chatting with those around him or looking in a different direction. I wonder if it pained him to see us play so well without him. I respect the man, and I am thankful for all those assists and set pieces last season, but I can’t help but think we’re better off without him. I haven’t seen us play as fast as we did in the first twenty minutes today for a very long time. Furthermore, all of our forwards and midfielders were constantly pestering and pressuring when not in possession. It wasn’t total football but it was close; it’s the kind of game Rivaldo can’t play anymore.

Mourhino was in the crowd too. I’m not sure who he was there to watch, but I would not be very surprised if Inter Milan made a play for either Edinho or Pilatsikas come the next transfer window.  Let’s hope he was just on holiday.