Panathinaikos overcame rivals Olympiacos in what was a true war of attrition, emerging victorious via a penalty shoot-out to advance into the Greek Cup quarter-finals.
The “Trifylli” beat the Piraeus giants 7-6 on penalties after a hard-fought 0-0 draw following 120 minutes of play at “Georgios Karaiskakis” Stadium on Thursday morning.
The match was not without its chances but each team was able to keep the other goalless, finishing the tie at 1-1 on aggregate.
For the Greens, it was truly a battle of will and survival as they finished the match with only one proper attacker on the pitch in winger Aitor Cantalapiedra.
The match was decided in an incredibly tense penalty shoot-out which saw lots of drama unfold.
The tension rose to its absolute highest when Olympiacos goalkeeper Alexandros Paschalakis saved Filip Mladenovic’s penalty, giving midfielder Joao Carvalho the chance to win it for the “red-whites” when Greens goalkeeper Yuri Lodygin guessed correctly to keep his team in the contest.
The match and tie was ultimately decided when Olympiacos midfielder Mady Camara hit his attempt over the bar, allowing Panathinaikos to qualify to the next round.
The drama continued with Aris also standing tall in a penalty shoot-out (wining 4-2) after playing out a 1-1 draw at home with AEK, knocking Enosi out of the Cup as a result.
The Double-headed eagle of the South went ahead just before the break through midfielder Mijat Gacinovic, who pounced on a rebound by goalkeeper Julian Cuesta’s initial save from a corner set-piece (45+1′).
Aris striker Loren Moron equalised in the 58th minute with a header from a free kick, which proved to be the final goal of the contest as neither side was able to strike again even with extra time.
The tie had to be decided via penalties and Cuesta was the hero of the shootout, saving two spot-kicks to help the Thessaloniki side win it 4-2 and progress to the quarter-finals.
PAOK has all but sealed qualification into the semi-finals after smashing Panserraikos 0-4 in the first leg of their quarter-final tie.
The Thessaloniki giants took the lead eight minutes in through a headed goal from close range by defender Ivan Nasberg before right back Joan Sastre doubled their lead soon after (22′).
Striker Brandon Thomas had a golden chance from the penalty spot to make it three, but his effort was saved by goalkeeper Panagiotis Katsikas as he successfully dove to his left (58′).
The visitors would eventually find their third through a lovely shot by midfielder Marcos Antonio (69′) and winger Andrija Zivkovic wrapped it up with a final goal in the 78th minute.
Second division side Athens Kallithea pulled off a mighty effort, though ultimately fell short in their tie with Panetolikos as they drew 2-2 at home to lose 4-5 on aggregate.
The Agrinio side stormed to a two-goal lead with efforts from defender Bruno Duarte (7′) and midfielder Juanpi (12′) before striker Giannis Loukinas halved the deficit (36′).
Winger Gonzalo Torres helped the hosts level up the match in the 90+1st minute, earning an impressive draw despite it not helping them avoid elimination from the tournament.
OFI have secured a place in the next round after drawing 1-1 away with Kifisia, winning the tie 4-2 on aggregate.
The home side gave themselves hope of advancing in the Cup when midfielder Georgios Konstantakopoulos scored on the hour mark, though they were unable to find the second goal they required to make it level on aggregate.
The Cretans eventually scored themselves right at the death through striker Luiz Phellype’s penalty to seal their opponents’ exit from the tournament (90+3′).
Atromitos ran past second division club Larissa (AEL FC) in their second leg on Wednesday morning, beating them 4-0 at home to win 5-1 on aggregate.
The Peristeriotes went in front, thanks to midfielder Antonis Trimmatis (39′), with forward Karol Angielski doubling their lead from the penalty spot (50′).
Larissa suffered a major setback in the 56th minute when midfielder Kostas Papageorgiou was sent off for a second yellow card, and Atromitos capitalised with two more goals through centre back Dimitrios Tsakmakis’ corner header (84′) and striker Nikos Vergos 90+3rd minute strike.
