Stalemate end to the 100th edition of the Eternal Derby

By: Peter Katsiris | March 2nd, 2009

Greece’s biggest derby ended in a stalemate yet again as Olympiacos and Panathinaikos failed to find a way past either ‘keeper and a 0-0 score-line was the full-time result at the Giorgos Karaiskakis Stadium on Sunday. With eleven points separating both sides at the top of the table, Olympiacos failed to snap a three-game winless skid and extend their lead on their intercity rivals. Panathinaikos, however, didn’t utilize the momentum from their midweek draw with Villarreal as both sides settled for a scoreless finish to the most hyped fixture on the Greek schedule.

Both sides entered the titanic clash on different mind sets; Olympiacos ailing after their UEFA Cup exit, while a momentous Panathinaikos looked to continue their winning ways.

Despite the difference in momentum, the one hundredth edition of the Eternal derby started off like many in recent history. Both sides look to assert a winning rhythm, but opposing defences made it impossible for a tempo be established in the early going.

Olympiacos, however, has the lion’s share of possession throughout the derby’s introduction, but a steeled Panathinaikos defense forced the hosts to settle on the use of the flanks as the main route to Mario Galinovic’s goal.

Brazilian striker Diogo provided the first proper cross of the match as he offered an aerial pass for a surging Christos Patsatzoglou and Luciano Galletti but Mikael Nilsson thwarted the ball out of bounds ahead of the arriving pair. A corner immediately followed, but Diogo’s header fell neatly for Galinovic.

Another corner for Ernesto Valverde’s men nearly resulted in a breakthrough for the ‘Erythrolefki’. Predrag Djordjevic took the set piece but Paraskevas Antzas was unable to direct his header on target and an optimum chance to break the deadlock went disappointingly wide for the former Greece international.

It wasn’t until the twenty-seventh mark that Panathinaikos marked their offensive endeavours with their first chance of the match. Dimitris Salpigidis worked to create enough space for a strike from just outside the box, but the Greek striker was unable to catch the far corner of Nikopolidis’ net and the effort curl way wide of the Olympiacos goal.

Quickly transitioning from defense to offense, Oympiacos looked to turn the tables on their rivals when Patsatzoglou released a shot towards Galinovic’s goal. The Croatian ‘keeper, however, was left unstirred as Patsatzoglou’s effort sailed over the goal.

With the Panathinaikos goal situated in front of the rowdy Gate 7, it wasn’t surprising that Galinovic was the victim when two flares targeted the Croatian ‘keeper just after the half hour mark.

A knock to the Greek Champions was the next twist in the plot when Antzas and Salipigidis collided, leaving the former injured and in need of a replacement. Michal Zewlakow replaced Antzas in the center of defense to team up with Avraam Papadopoulos.

Both sides headed into the break with much to play after the restart, but it seemed a surprise to some football pundits that Panathinaikos was unable to find their way past Olympiacos. In fact, it was the latter that assumingly looked the better side through the first forty-five minutes as ‘O Thrylos’ looked to purge a three-game losing streak.

They started positively early in the second half as Dudu fired a blistering shot towards the Panathinaikos net, but Galinovic was unfazed even with the ball deflecting off Loukas Vyntra before falling for Galinovic.

Andreas Ivanchitz capped a quick break for the ‘Prasini’ just one minute later, but the Austria international was inaccurate with his shot as Nikopolidis watched the ball soar barely over his crossbar.

While the visitors seemed comfortable to counter-attack, on fifty-eight minutes they were reduced to ten men as Jose Sarriegi was shown second yellow card to result in his sending off. After picking up his first booking of the night by taking down Galletti, the Spaniard received his second caution of the night with a similar incident involving Olympiacos’ Argentine midfielder.

Now focusing on sustaining the 0-0 score-line, Panathinaikos manager Henk Ten Cate was forced to shuffle his line-up in order to cover for Sarriegi’s dismissal.

Olympiacos, meanwhile, attempted to bury their rivals through Fernando Belluschi. The former River Plate star received a pass from Vasilis Torosidis, before firing a shot from distance only to have Galinovic easily collect the effort to deny an Olympiacos breakthrough.

Despite being a man down, and against the run of play, Panathinaikos still pushed forward and had the best chance of the game on seventy-minutes. Giorgos Karagounis took a free-kick effort from the edge of the Olympiacos box, but the Greece captain could only slam his effort off the upright. The bouncing ball, which looked to create chaos in the Olympiacos box, never made it back to the Olympiacos goal as the ball was cleared with ease.

The derby began to take characteristics of many from before, as the dying minutes panned out for a congested finale. Simao, however, took a chance in securing some late heroics for the traveling contingent, but the Malian, who recently signed a new deal with the Athenians, fired his shot over the goal.

At the other end, a late surge nearly became the decider for Olympiacos. Belluschi, despite being injured a few days earlier, came very close in grabbing a late winner for the hosts but his header off a Torosidis cross was barely tipped away for a corner by a stretched Galinovic.

Nearly bagging a full three points at the death, the final whistle came with a bitter pill of disappointment for Olympiacos. Valverde’s side was unable to assert their strength in numbers, and end a winless run which now reaches four matches in all competitions.

With the draw, and win for PAOK against Panionios in Nea Smyrni, Olympiacos’ lead at the top of the Greek table has been trimmed to nine points. Panathinaikos is also affected by the result between PAOK and Panionios, as PAOK edges the Champions League contenders to move into second place, two points ahead of Ten Cate’s side.

The next match for both sides come in their respective Greek Cup campaigns, which resume during midweek. Olympiacos continues their home stand and aim to overturn a 1-0 aggregate deficit to PAOK in Piraeus. Panathinaikos faces a lighter task when Panserraikos visit the OAKA Spyros Louis Stadium on the same day.

Super League efforts resume on the ensuing weekend, and Olympiacos again meets second placed PAOK, one day before Larissa visits Panathinaikos in Athens.

Olympiacos CFP 0-0 Panathinaikos FC

Yellow Cards:
Olympiacos CFP – Dudu 25′, Diogo 56′, Pantos 60′, Galletti 69′, Belluschi 75′.
Panathinaikos FC – Sarriegi 22′ (58′), Wawrzyniak 53′, Christodoulopoulos 79′, Spyropoulos 85′.

Red Cards:
Olympiacos CFP – none.
Panathinaikos FC – Sarriegi 58′ (sent off after double booking).

Olympiacos CFP (Ernesto Valverde): Nikopolidis, Torosidis, Antzas (44′ Zewlakow), Papadopoulos, Pantos, Dudu, Patsatzoglou (77′ Mendrinos), Djordjevic (82′ Oscar), Galletti, Belluschi, Diogo.

Panathnaikos FC (Henk Ten Cate): Galinovic, Nilsson, Wawrzyniak, Sarriegi, Vyntra, Gilberto Silva, Simao, Karagounis, Ivanschitz (63′ Spyropoulos), Salpigidis (84′ Cleyton), Rukavina (64′ Christodoulopoulos).

Referee: Ilias Spathas (Piraeus)

Attendance: 28 775

Venue: Giorgos Karaiskakis Stadium, Piraeus, Greece.