Greek Football League

With all focus on PAOK, Savvidis, AEK & the postponement of the Greek Super League, I turn your attention to the Football League, Greece's second football tier, where the race for promotion has heated up.


A month ago ARIS Thessaloniki FC sat comfortable in the drivers seat, set to run away with top spot whilst Panachaiki looked comfortable in second spot and automatic promotion, but Aris having drawn their round 19 & 20 games gave an opportunity to a red hot OFI team to take top spot and they took it with a 3-0 win over Trikala on Saturday.

ARIS managed to take top spot again by beating OFI's Cretan rival in Ergotelis 3-0, where Platellas, Kassos & new signing Chanti all hit the back of the net.

Early promotion favourites Panachaiki have had an inconsistent 2 months, managing 3 wins, 2 draws & 2 losses. These results have put the club from Patras into 3rd spot, with 43 points, 10 points of the league leaders however this past Monday saw another Cretan club in AO Chania Kissamikos host Panachaiki in a catch up game that was a must win for Katsouranis' men.

Panachaiki managed to run away from Crete with a 2-1 win keeping them within touching distance of the top 2 promotion spots.


As it stands, Round 22 in Patras this Saturday will be huge with only 12 games remaining in the season. Panachaiki will have the massive task of hosting lead leaders ARIS. With a sell-out crowd expected, this fixture will act as a 6 pointer for both clubs. If this game happens to finish as a draw, it gives OFI the opportunity to take top spot as they are strong favourites to win as they travel to Kallithea, who are struggling in second to last spot on the ladder.

It's also important to note that OFI have a +7 goal difference on ARIS, which could prove to be vital at the season's end.

Unlike the Greek Super League, the Greek Football League is not suspended & is shaped to be a very interesting last 2-3 months of football.

By Kosta Mantis for Hellas Football



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