Both Panathinaikos and Olympiakos have qualified to the last 12 of the Champions League, and will both face Russian opposition in the next round.
On Wednesday Panathinaikos dismissed Poland’s Jastrzebski 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-22) at home, although one set would have been enough for the Greens to qualify.
They finished second in Pool E.
The Greens practically began celebrations after the first set, whilst in the second set, Stelios Kazazis’ team was practically unbeatable with the Polish side never getting within three points of the hosts.
Kazazis said after the match, “Congratulations to everybody. I have to mention that this is a very big achievement for my team.
In six matches played in the prelims, only twice we had a complete roster at my disposal.”
In Pool A, Olympiakos stunned Italy’s Trentino 3-2 away (25-23, 14-25, 25-21, 23-25, 15-13) to finish third in their group, but managed to go through as being the best third-placed team across the six Champions League groups.
Olympiacos showed good efficiency in service with 10 aces, and the performances of Miljkovic (21) and Caldeira (16) were remarkable against last season’s champion.
“Trentino is the world champion and we are proud to be the only team that has seized the night here at the PalaTrento.
We played an intensive match and I am proud of my players” said the head coach of Olympiacos Anders Kristiansson.
After the draw that took place on Thursday, Panathinaikos will play Dynamo Moscow, that features former Panathinaikos star Amaral Dante, and Olympiakos will play Zenit Kazan in home and away games on February 10 and 17.
Olympiakos will be the hosts in the first leg and Panathinaikos in the second.
If both Greek teams qualify they will face each other for a place in the Final-Four, scheduled for Lodz in April.