Turkish delight leaves bitter taste for Olympiacos

By: Peter Katsiris | October 23rd, 2008

The revival of the Greco-Turkish rivalry didn’t produce a memorable result for Olympiacos on this night, as Olympiacos was narrowly edged by Galatasaray at the Ali Sami Yen Stadium in Istanbul. A lone goal by summer-signing Harry Kewell was just enough to give the Turkish maximum points, and leave the Greek Champions searching for answers ahead of Matchday 2.

With both sides playing with the added focus on national pride, a physical encounter was expected and the first twenty minutes produced no different. With the stakes high, both sides looked to solidify their respective tempo and surely enough the physicality factor crept into the match. After a series of cautions for Olympiacos and Galatasaray players, the game opened up in favour of the hosts. First, Arda Turan flashed a header off a corner from Lincoln, but Antonis Nikopolidis’ goal was not threatened as the header sailed wide of the far post. Two minutes later Galatasaray attacked again; despite being left alone in the box, Kewell’s dreadful miss left the loyal Galatasaray supporters hungry for a goal.

Galatasaray continued to occupy the Olympiacos end, and a shot from Sabri Sarioglu forced Nikopolidis to give up a corner. The ensuing corner proved to be more rewarding for Galatasaray and the several Turkish supporters on hand, as Lincoln’s corner was met by the head of Kewell to finally break the deadlock in Istanbul. After beating Didier Domi to the ball, Kewell rose to the occasion to narrowly direct the ball into the far left corner of Olympiacos’ net.

Struggling to find a rhythm before the deficit was enforced, Olympiacos looked to respond. Their first attempt - it also marked the Greeks’ first chance at goal - came through Fernando Belluschi but the effort left Morgan De Sanctis untested through a half hour of play.

Nearly ten minutes later the visitors posed a more vibrant threat, but not before controversy cause frustration through the Olympiacos ranks. With Diogo striving towards goal, a late challenge from Cetin saw the Brazilian tumble merely before he looked to have had the intention of striking the ball. Nonetheless, the appeal for a penalty was overlooked and Galatasaray continued to cling to its slim advantage. The lead was tested when Luciano Galletti fired a shot from some distance, but De Sanctic parried to force nothing but a corner.

With one half down, the hill to climb had become much steeper for Olympiacos after just three-quarters of an hour. Even though pre-match expectations hinted at a tough time in Turkey, Olympiacos - who looked rejuvenated after the deflating aggregate loss to Anorthosis Famagusta in August - was not able to find the proper chemistry to pose any offensive threat.

Looking to capitalize on their opponents offensive woes, Galatasaray seemed destined to double their tally but the stubborn crossbar denied Lincoln of reaching the score sheet. Ten minutes passed before the score-line looked to be adjusted, as Turan fired a shot which had intentions of testing Nikopolidis but all threats were off when the ball continued to incline. However, the effort from Lincoln five minutes later was much more effective; but not enough to add to Galatasaray’s lead. A powerful, long range shot from the Brazilian forced Nikopolidis into a dynamic save which ensured Olympiacos still had a pulse in the game.

That pulse didn’t show too many signs of life until second-half substitute Darko Kovacevic flashed a header just wide after Belluschi had found the tall Serb with some precision. Slim fractions left Olympiacos behind, but the fractions worked in favour of the ‘Eruthroleuki’ at the other. Lincoln was the culprit again, and like his earlier effort the freekick curled to only nip the post. Luck eluded Shabani Nonda just moments later, as his glorious opportunity to pre-maturely end the match was well wasted, when he thrashed the final ball wide of the goal.

Olympiacos looked to the final stages of the match to grab a late equalizer, and a share of the spoils. But the efforts to claw back to level terms were nothing but spoiled. With the added time extending to five minutes, Diogo had the Olympiacos bench on its feet when he reached a long range pass from Vassilios Torosidis ahead of De Sanctics. Unfortunately for the Greek Champions, the team’s leading domestic scorer was not able to play hero on this night as his header trickled wide of the goal.

Galatasaray held on to claim the three points - even if it was by slim fractions. Meanwhile, Olympiacos disappointed with its performance on Thursday night. Failing to cause any headaches for Galatasaray and its backline, the Olympiacos attack was reeling from the lack of production from traditional spearheads.

The group’s other match saw affairs end all square in Germany, as Benfica and Hertha Berlin played to a 1-1 draw at the Olympiastadion in Berlin. Angel Di Maria’s opening tally was cancelled out by Marko Pantelic with just over fifteen minutes to play, as the Portuguese giants were held by the capital club. Ukranian outfit, Metalist Kharkhiv, enjoyed the day off.

When play resumes on November 6^th, SL Benfica will entertain Galatasaray in Lisbon, while Metalist Kharkhiv will test the waters of the UEFA Cup group stage with a visit from Hertha Berlin. Olympiacos will look to regroup as they will not be in action on that day; waiting for matchday 3 when the Greek Champions host Benfica.

Galatasaray 1-0 Olympiacos
Kewell 27′

Yellow Cards:
Galatasaray - Lincoln 15′, Emre Asik 59′, Ayhan Akman 71′, De Sanctis 90 + 4′.
Olympiacos - Patsatzoglou 10′, Antzas 12′, Galletti 62′, Domi 87′.

Galatasaray (Michael Skibbe): De Sanctis, Emre Asik, Fernando Meira, Servet, Balta, Arda Turan, Ayhan Akman (70′ Yaman), Lincoln, Kewell (86′ Mehmet Guven), Baros (79′ Nonda), Sabri.

Olympiacos (Ernesto Valverde): Nikopolidis, Pantos (57′ Leto), Domi, A. Papadopoulos, Zewlakow, Antzas, Torosidis, Patsatzoglou (73′Oscar), Galletti (79′ Kovacevic), Belluschi, Diogo.

Referee: Eduardo Iturralde Gonzalez (Spain)

Venue: Ali Sami Yen Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey