Olympiacos Frostbitten in Ukraine

By: Peter Katsiris | December 4th, 2008

It began with a two hour delay at Kiev’s main airport, and when Olympiacos finally arrived in Kharkiv, their fortunes weren’t any different. Playing on a tundra-like pitch, in near freezing temperatures, Olympiacos struggled to adjust to life in Ukraine and ultimately fell 1-0 to Metalist Kharkiv on Wednesday.

With Olympiacos’ play optimal in recent weeks, the Greek Champions were wary to stay focussed on Wednesday night. An unsettled beginning to their Ukrainian endeavour left Olympiacos shaky, and in need of a matchday 5 victory to keep their European ambitions alive.

Duplicating their feat from last week, the Ukrainian side managed to rely on Edmar’s late strike for two consecutive UEFA Cup matchdays, and seal a berth in the next round of the UEFA Cup. In what has become a truly historic European campaign, the ‘Zhovto-Syni’ have impressed in recent weeks; transforming from an underdog, to a potential Group B winner.

It was clear Olympiacos was struggling from the opening minutes of the match, with jetlag proving to be just one of the reasons holding the Greek Champions. Realizing their opponents appeared to be in a weak state, Metalist attacked consistently – leaving Olympiacos’ back line on edge. With a rocky pitch affecting Olympiacos’ approach to the match, home comforts were clearly working in Metalist’s favour.

Not helping Olympiacos’ cause was the abundance of turnovers conceded by its own defenders. Mistakes would see Metalist continue to pounce, as Antonis Nikopolidis experienced the beginning of a busy night in Kharkiv. Serhiy Valyayev initiated Metalist’ opportunities, with Nikopolidis having to save the Ukraine international’s effort just after ten minutes. Several other surges by the hosts were inflicted on the Greek Champions, but the last line of defense guided the Greeks to steer around disaster.

While their opponents nearly found a goal, Olympiacos failed to make much impact at the other end – many thanks to the numerous offside calls against the likes of Luciano Galletti and Diogo. Set-pieces looked to be Olympiacos’ only haven in offense, but Metalist’s organization in defense was just as effective; resulting in nothing but a clearance by the Metalist backline.

Hoping for more in the second half, ‘O Thrylos’ started the second frame just like their counterparts did the first half. Attack after attack resembled Metalist’s grit, but just like the hosts were unable to find the right tonic, Olympiacos also wasted their opportunities.

The breakthrough should have come just a handful of minutes into the second half, as a defensive error allowed Diogo to connect with Vasilis Torosidis’ centering cross. Surprisingly, the player who has been clinical in his finishing over the last few matches, Diogo failed to leave a mark on the scoreboard; keeping the score level at 0-0.

A free-kick just outside the Metalist box just before the hour mark gave Olympiacos another optimum opportuinity to grab the lead, but Predrag Djordjevic’s grounded strike did little to test Metalist ‘keeper Oleksandr Goryainov.

Not content to just sit back and defend the deadlock, home support went a long way to rally the home side back into Olympiacos’ end. Brazilian midfielder Edmar raced down the right flank and with a centering pass found Ruslan Fomin for a free-header opportunity. The on-loan Shakhtar Donetsk player failed to take advantage of the opportunity as he directed his aerial effort over the crossbar.

Another Brazilian then occupied the match with two opportunites to give the home side a late lead. Jaja became the center of attack for an in-sync Metalist side, but neither effort directed towards Nikopolidis had enough conviction to beat the former Greece international.

Olympiacos found themselves with a rare offensive opportunity with Dudu connecting with defender Didier Domi on the left flank. The Frenchman failed to cause any problems for Goryainov, firing his grounded strike directly towards the Metalist captain.

With Olympiacos failing to produce a goal at one end, Metalist struck with the devastating blow just three minutes before time. Another poor defensive display allowed Edmar to squeak his way clear of the Olympiacos defense, before providing a dipping volley to the far post. With defenders scrambling to clear the ball off the line, the failure to head the ball clear allowed Edmar’s effort to ricochet off the post and then off Avraam Papadopoulos before gracing the mesh of the goal.

Desperate to grab an eqaulizer in heroic fashion, Olympiacos pushed forward but exposure in defense nearly allowed Andriy Koniushenko to seal the win; fortunately an alert Nikopolidis denied the defender of a decisive tally.

The final whistle proved a second strike was not necessary, as Kharkiv erupted in celebration with fireworks and Tina Turner’s “Simply the Best” ongoing in the background.

Setting up a tense final, the loss forces Olympiacos to wrap up their group stage campaign with a must-win match at home to Hertha Berlin in two weeks time. Ahead of the German visit to Piraeus, the Greek Champions will focus on their domestic campaign as Levadeiakos visits the GIorgos Karaiskakis Stadium in a few days time.

Metalist Kharkiv 1-0 Olympiacos CFP

Edmar 87′

Yellow Cards:

Metalist Kharkiv – Valyayev 71′.

Olympiacos – Antzas 22′, Galletti 36′, Domi 60′.

Metalist Kharkiv (Myron Markevych): Goryainov, Gancarczyk (94′ Babych), Valyayev, Edmar, Sliusar, Obradovic, Maidana, Gueye, Fomin (82′ Trisovic), Bordian, Jaja (91′ Konyushenko)

Olympiacos CFP (Ernesto Valverde): Nikopolidis, Patsatzoglou, Galletti (72′ Mitroglou), Domi, Diogo, Djordjevic, Antzas, Dudu, Papadopoulos, Belluschi, Torosidis (80′ Pantos).

Referee: William Collum (Scotland)

Venue: Oblasny SportComplex Metalist