Atromitos has completed half the mission of upsetting Panathinaikos in the Greek Cup after scoring a remarkable victory at “Leoforos” Stadium, ruining what the Greens was hoping to be a hero’s welcome for new signing Anastasios Bakasetas.

The Peristeriotes downed the “Trifylli” 1-2 away on Thursday morning (AEDT) in the first leg of their quarter-finals tie, drastically improving their chances of securing a spot into the next round.

The Greens went ahead in the 11th minute, courtesy of an effort from forward Aitor Cantalapiedra, when the Peristeriotes turned the tables on their opponents.

Atromitos first levelled up the contest when striker Karol Angielski pounced on a rebound save from debuting goalkeeper Bartlomiej Dragowski (25′) before teammate Denzel Jubitana put the visitors in front from a counter-attack following a Panathinaikos corner (42′).

The “Trifylli” had a golden chance to make it level when they won a late penalty, but Fotis Ioannidis’ attempt was kept out by goalkeeper Panagiotis Tsintotas.

This proved sufficient for the Peristeri club as they now only need a draw in next week’s decider to advance into the last four.

Panathinaikos will now have to muster all their strength in next week’s second leg to continue their Cup run.

Aris has all but guaranteed their spot in the semi-finals after beating Niki Volos 3-0 at “Kleanthis Vikelidis” ground in the first leg.

The Thessaloniki outfit bagged their first of the night in the 58th minute when midfielder Vladimir Darida guided the ball in from close range, the goal officially being awarded by VAR after an initial call of offside from the linesman.

Darida then popped up again to score Aris’ second, heading in a cross from the left (90+3′), and winger Magomed Suleymanov put the game to bed with a final effort right at the death (90+6′).

The result has practically secured the “yellow-blacks” of a semi-finals berth, putting them one step closer to winning the Cup for the first time since the 1969-70 season.

A last-minute strike from Nikos Karelis helped Panetolikos record a massive 1-2 away triumph against OFI on Wednesday morning in the first leg of their quarter-finals tie.

The Agrinio side took the lead in the 19th minute after striker Joao Pedro finished off a counter-attack with a shot into the left side of the goal.

The Cretans drew level shortly after the break through midfielder Marko Bakic and the match seemed destined for a draw when another Panetolikos counter-attack saw Karelis give his side a last-minute winner.

The result is a huge confidence boost for the Canaries heading into next week’s second leg at their own home ground.