Just two-and-a-half months in as coach of Greece, Claudio Ranieri is heading towards a pair of key Euro 2016 qualifiers that could put his job at risk.
After a disastrous start to his campaign with an opening 1-0 Group F loss at home to Romania last month, and two failures with their Finland and Northern Ireland matches this week, the 63-year-old Italian is certainly feeling the pressure.
While there have been calls for Ranieri to fall on his sword from disgruntled fans, the coach is still confident he can get Greece to the Euro 2016 championship.
He won’t be going anywhere any time soon, with sources at the Greek soccer federation having stated that Ranieri has a two-year contract to help the team qualify for the Euro 2016 finals and that there is no question of his replacement, at least at this stage.
Ranieri, who was sacked from Monaco in May, had very little time to gain knowledge of the players and it showed with the loss to Romania. He was also criticised by the Greek press for his player selections and tactics in the match.
The federation earlier this month appointed former Greece captain Giorgos Karagounis to act as liaison between Ranieri and the players in order to help bridge the communication gap.
Karagounis, who at age 37 retired as a player from the Greek squad with a record 139 caps, knows the Italian well after playing two years at Inter Milan.
With the arrival of Karagounis, it seems that there is a better understanding between Ranieri and the players.
Before the two matches this week, Karagounis assured the media and the fans that there was an “excellent” atmosphere in the team.
The morale at the moment might not be so high.
Greece is now dealing with the prospect of elimination after a 1-1 draw with Finland and a 2-0 loss against Northern Ireland.
The team was taught a harsh lesson, and Ranieri an even harsher one.
In the Northern Ireland match, he fielded some of Greece’s best, with two centre forwards in Kostas Mitroglou and Stefanos Athanasiadis, and two wingers in Giorgos Samaras and Nikos Karelis, but there was no link between the holding midfielders and the frontline of the team.
The 20,000 Greek fans expecting to see their team show they are in fact deserving of their top 20 standings instead stood shell-shocked as the team looked visibly frustrated, while Northern Ireland couldn’t believe their luck.
Ranieri admitted that the team lacked concentration.
“We lacked focus at the start and conceded early on which made it difficult for us,” said Ranieri.
“It was very difficult to break down a side so compact in defence. They are a team that know only too well how to close down space.
“We got hit by counter-attacks and had no balance in midfield. It was concentration that we lacked.”
The Finland game was better, but with Ranieri fielding a younger squad making up for unfortunate injuries the game stayed in a stalemate.
After three matches, Greece is second last in group F, holding only one point, while Northern Ireland leads ahead of Romania and Finland.
Source: AFP, Kathimerini