A late strike from a former Green left Panathinaikos to rue their missed opportunities as they settled for a draw with Levadiakos in their opening league game of the season.
The “Trifylli” was kept to a 1-1 draw against the “blue-greens” at “Leoforos” Stadium in the closing game of the Greek Super League’s second round on Monday morning (AEST), giving them a sluggish start to their league campaign.
The match started perfectly for the Greens as they scored inside the first minute of the contest scored by Filip Djuricic.
The goal came in the immediate aftermath of a corner kick wherein the ball fell to Davide Calabria, who unleashed a lethal strike from outside the box that Djuricic flicked on into the bottom left corner.
Panathinaikos piled on the pressure for the rest of the opening half but failed to convert their numerous chances into additional goals.
Levadiakos made them pay for their wastefulness as they produced a stunning equaliser in the 86th minute courtesy of former Panathinaikos winger Benjamin Verbic, who squeezed the ball from a very tight angle into the goal off the underside of the crossbar.
The result marks a poor start for the Greens in the league, sending them into the international break in bad spirits.
PAOK and AEK earned maiden league wins at home, each beating Atromitos and Asteras Tripolis 1-0 respectively.
The Thessaloniki giants had to work for their win as the Peristeriotes kept the game scoreless for 70 minutes of play, even after Makana Baku received a second yellow card in the 45+4th minute.
It took PAOK until the 73rd minute to finally score with Dimitris Pelkas grabbing the winning goal.
AEK’s match winner came much earlier by comparison as Frantzdy Pierrot headed the ball into the net in the 38th minute, which proved enough to secure the points.
A late charge helped Olympiacos make it two wins from two as they beat Volos 0-2 away on Sunday morning.
It took until the 77th minute for the reigning champions to penetrate the Magnesia outfit’s defence, with Chiquinho providing the crucial breakthrough to put them ahead.
Captain Panagiotis Retsos then sealed the points eight minutes later to secure their second straight victory to start the season.
Panetolikos caused the first upset of the campaign as they stunned Aris with a 0-2 away success at “Kleanthis Vikelidis” ground.
The Canaries opened the scoring in the 65th minute via Jorge Aguirre before Kosta Aleksic put the win beyond doubt with a goal in the 87th minute.
OFI opened their league account in style after earning a 0-1 away triumph over Panserraikos, thanks to a 54th minute winner from Borja Gonzalez.
Larissa and Kifisia were forced to split the points after playing out a 1-1 draw.
The hosting Larissa side were first to strike with Facundo Perez giving them the lead in the 50th minute before an own goal by Epaminondas Pantelakis in the 64th minute made things levels.
The two recently promoted teams each secured their first point this term, which they will hope is the first of many as they strive to stay alive in the top-flight by season end.
Greek Super League Ladder (*game in hand)
1-Olympiacos: 6
2-AEK: 6
3-PAOK: 6
4-Levadiakos: 4
5-Atromitos: 3
6-Panetolikos: 3
7-*OFI: 3
8-Aris: 3
9-Kifisia: 1
10-Larissa: 1
11-*Panathinaikos: 1
12-Asteras Tripolis: 0`
13-Panserraikos: 0
14-Volos: 0
