An acrobatic volley from Spaniard David Fuster gave Olympiakos a 2-1 win over Aris in Thessaloniki on Saturday night and brought the Reds a step closer to the Super League title.
The win means that Olympiakos will go into next weekend’s derby against Panathinaikos with at least a seven-point advantage over the Greens, heaping all the pressure on the reigning champions, who will need to win at the Karaiskaki Stadium to have a chance of retaining their title.
However, Olympiakos’s grasp on the championship looked less than strong at Aris for parts of the game. Darcy Neto gave the Yellows the lead on 18 minutes and it looked as if the home side might be ready to spring a surprise.
But Raffik Djebbour, who scored for AEK earlier this season at the Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium, repeated the trick in the 40th minute with an assured finish.
The second half was evenly balanced but hinged on a moment of great improvisation from David Fuster who produced a scissor kick on 75 minutes when Aris defenders failed to head the ball clear. The Spaniard saw his shot rebound off the post, hit the goalkeeper and then cross the line.
Earlier, Reds defender Cristian Modesto had been lucky not to be sent off after appearing to dive for a penalty and then pushing an Aris player.
The win moves Olympiakos up to 57 points after 22 games. Panathinaikos are on 47 but have a chance to cut the gap if they beat AEK on Sunday.
Aris remain on 28 points in seventh place.
Their Thessaloniki rivals, PAOK, also suffered a defeat on Saturday, going down 1-0 at Panionios.
Bosko Balaban scored the only goal from the penalty spot in the 73rd minute. Bruno Cirillo was sent off for PAOK in the closing stages.
PAOK remain in third on 34 points, Panionios are three points clear of the relegation zone on 24 points.
Ergotelis joined Kavala on 31 points after beating the side from northern Greece 2-1 on Crete.
The dependable Benjamin Onwuachi opened the scoring for the visitors in the 22nd minute. Beto equalized for the Cretans just before half time.
Sergio Leal Gonzalez scored the winner for Ergotelis from the penalty spot on 72 minutes.