Sorry for the lack of posts recently. To be honest, I’ve had a hard time following and keeping up with all the news regarding the stadium, players for next year, and what exactly will be happening with the team and the management board.
The season has obviously been over for a while now, and we now know who we’ll be facing for next season. There are certainly some pretty dangerous teams in the list, and all I can say is that I hope we have players who are up for the challenge. Among the teams we’ll face will be Panahaiki, Fostiras, Kallithea, and Apollon Smirnis.
For those who don’t know, the second division is considerably different than the Superleague. Second division in Greece is actually two divisions, a Northern division and a Southern division (which we’ll be playing in next season). The Southern division includes teams from Attiki, the Peloponnese, and Crete, as well as a couple other regions. At the end of the regular season, the top four teams from each division play each other in an eight team playoff, with the top three teams being promoted to the Superleague.
In addition to the teams already listed for our group, there are some even tougher opponents in the northern group, teams we’ll quite likely face during the playoffs. A few examples of some worrying opposition: Aris, Iraklis, Olympiakos Volou, Doxa Dramas, Larissa, and Lamia. Definitely won’t be easy.
I wish I had some solid news to discuss regarding the stadium, but I really don’t know what exactly is going on. As far as I can tell, there are still a few hurdles regarding laws, parliament, municipalities, and the environment, that need to be sorted out. Knowing how things in Greece work, I can only imagine this will all be worked out later rather than sooner…
There have been a few names for players thrown around for next season, with Dimitris Papadopoulos being one of the more recognizable ones (can’t say I’m extremely excited about the prospect of signing Papadopoulos, though I guess he will bring some experience to the squad).. An interesting name I’ve seen thrown around the past few days has been not that of a possible player for next season, but a possible coach:
Yes, apparently Lorenzo Serra Ferrer is being linked by some (not necessarily in Greece) to AEK… Now, I know it probably will just turn out to be another rumour, but I must admit, maybe its not the worst idea. He did have some pretty decent moments with us, and though he did leave after a while, lets face it: Whoever we do sign to be our coach will probably end up leaving the same way (if recent history is anything to go by).
The first time I saw his name linked to us, I laughed. But the more I think about it, the more I realize maybe it isn’t a completely crazy idea. We’ve had high profile Spaniards manage us, as well as lower profile Greeks, and even former AEK players recently. Managers have come and gone, and come again. Sometimes things improve momentarily, but they almost always take a turn for the worse eventually. At least with Ferrer, we’ll have a coach who will come to the team knowing its history and know what kind of pressure to expect from the supporters. He will come already having experience with life in Greece, and some of the management staff would even be players that he managed six years ago (wow, I can’t believe its already been that long). Who knows… either way, whoever we go with will be a risk, that’s a guarantee. So maybe it would be worth it to go with someone we at least somewhat know? Just my opinion..
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