Hellas Football

  Olympiakos vs Maccabi Haifa  UCL 2nd Qualifying Round Preview  By Stephen Kountourou Seconds. Seconds were the difference between me getting my prediction exactly right last Wednesday evening as Olympiakos were hosted by Maccabi Haifa. But sadly what I also said could be Thrylos downfall, happened. The team's concentration lapsed at the final moments of added time which resulted in an equaliser at the death.  Now with the home tie looming it is all to play for with the aggregate score deadlocked at 1-1. Can Olympiakos finally overcome Israeli opposition and progress to the next round, with Apollon Limassol lying in wait? Or will Thrylos crash out of the Champions League qualifiers for the second consecutive season with the supporter's frustration on social media ready to burst its banks?  Brief 1st Leg Review  At a packed Sammy Ofer Stadium, it was the away side that started the brighter of the two teams. Within the first 10 minutes, an Olympiakos attack resulted in a shot fr

  Maccabi Haifa vs Olympiakos: Champions League 2nd Qualifying Round  By Stephen Kountourou Competitive football returns! With pre-season over for Olympiakos, the Greek champions start their season with a very tough test in the UEFA Champions League 2nd qualifying round against Israeli champions Maccabi Haifa. This was an opponent Thrylos did not need at the very beginning of the season. Not only was Maccabi Haifa one of the toughest possible draws for the Greek champions, Olympiakos historically faltered against Israeli opposition with some of the most embarrassing defeats in Europe coming at the hands of clubs from Israel. Still with a strong transfer window and more reinforcements still to come Olympiakos are still the favourites on paper in the tie. Not that it makes the anticipation of these matches any easier.   Competitive record vs Israeli Teams As stated previously, Olympiakos record against Israeli sides in Europe is a worrying one, with the first encounter coming nearly 20 y

  Can Temur Ketsbaia Turn Cyprus Around? By Stephen Kountourou It has been a real struggle for supporters of the Cyprus national team over the last couple of years. Fans of the Island nation were promised that massive changes would come in the form of a younger squad, a focus on youth development, a more progressive style of football and the hope of becoming more competitive on the international stage. We have a more youthful side, but one that looked devoid of ideas almost every game. The team was evidently uncomfortable with what they were instructed to do on the pitch and a lack of tactical identity has resulted in some embarrassing results against teams that Cyprus should be beating.  I have made this clear many times and I will say it again, this Cyprus team is talented. Individually Cyprus has a stronger side than people outside of the country give it credit for. Perhaps under a different manager than the likes of Johan Walem and Nikos Kostenoglou, who both failed spectacularly,