The group draw for World Cup qualification is being held on December 7th. Greece is probably being drawn from pot 3, but must still get good results in the remaining Nation League games to secure a place in that pot. The likeliest path to qualification is through the play-offs, but even if Greece finishes runner-up or succeeds via the convoluted Nations League path, it will still be difficult since only 3 of the remaining 12 from the play-offs round will qualify for the finals proper. Given the state of the team, the odds are stacked against Greece; with help from the Gods and through sheer determination, however, anything possible. I'd be happy if the team manages a respectable showing.
A win against Slovenia today should secure a pot 3 place for the World Cup draw and will ensure promotion to League B of the Nations League. Fortounis will need to deliver again as he did against Moldova if Greece is to have any chance. Best of luck to our boys and staff. May they do our country proud.
A drab draw that sees Slovenia top the group. Fair play to Slovenia who fully deserve their success. Greece may yet keep hold of a place in pot 3 come the World Cup draw. For Greece to be properly competitive Manolas has to return. His aerial presence on corner kicks today was sorely needed and may very well have proved the difference given how difficult it was for Greece to carve out good chances. As much I respect van't Schip, he is making a big mistake leaving him out.
Greece will be allocated into pot 3. The pots are allocated as follows. If not for Bosnia's loss to Italy and Finland's loss to Wales, Greece probably would have been in pot 4. Slovenia too could have stolen are place in pot 3 if we had lost. Pot 1: Belgium, France, England, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Croatia, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands Pot 2: Switzerland, Wales, Poland, Sweden, Austria, Ukraine, Serbia, Turkey, Slovakia, Romania Pot 3: Russia, Hungary, Republic of Ireland, Czech Republic, Norway, Northern Ireland, Iceland, Scotland, Greece, Finland Pot 4: Bosnia & Herzegovina, Slovenia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Bulgaria, Israel, Belarus, Georgia, Luxembourg Pot 5: Armenia, Cyprus, Faroe Islands, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Lithuania, Latvia, Andorra Pot 6: Malta, Moldova, Liechtenstein, Gibraltar, San Marino
Group B: Spain, Sweden, Greece, Georgia, Kosovo Under Luis Enrique, Spain have become unplayable once more. They're loaded with talented players, all of whom are match winners, and their approach will force any team, no matter how good, to defend in numbers. The Sweden I have known were generally physical and direct. They have produced some fine players over the years, most notably Gunnar Nordahl, Thomas Brolin, Henrik Larsson, and of course Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Right now I can't name anyone quite as talented as those three among their ranks, but they do have a couple of up and coming players, Alexander Isak is probably the one who stands out most. They have an experienced manager, but my impression is he prefers a conservative game. Greece has really reinvented herself under van't Schip and even if we fail to nab second place, I think we can expect our boys to put on a some competent and even exciting performances. I only hope van't Schip can mend his bridges with Manolas because there's no doubt his presence would make an enormous difference. I think Sokratis too still has a role to play when we get hard pressed.
The latest updates on our goalkeepers and defenders. Goalkeepers: Barkas has fallen out of favor at Celtic since picking up an injury after a loss to Rangers. He hasn't inspired a great deal of confidence for his club when he has played and it would seem he's still adjusting to life outside of Greece. Vlachodimos has been in decent form with Benfica, recovering well from his poor showing at the start of the season with that loss to Porto in the Supercup. Paschalakis, nominally Greece's other starting keeper, is on his way out of PAOK and is currently being shopped. Defenders: Tsimikas has rarely featured for Liverpool. They always have players coming through their own ranks, born and bred in Liverpool, and I personally think it will be difficult for him to continue long term at the club. I think he should consider a move elsewhere this summer or his career will suffer for it. Giannoulis looks destined for bigger and better things. He spent some time on the sidelines with a pulled hamstring, but other than that he has been playing rather regularly and even got an assist in his recent outing, a 2-1 win over old rivals Panathinaikos. He had to work hard for that assist and positionally he was so advanced you wouldn't have thought he was a left-back. This guy can get up and down a pitch like nobody else. Stafylidis remains out of action after that pulled shoulder injury he suffered in the Nations League. Lykogiannis, a left-back plying his trade with Cagliari, scored from a direct free-kick for the Sardinians in a draw with Udinese. You can see the goal below: (the goal can be seen at around the 45 second mark) Kyriakopoulos is another one of our left-backs turning heads. His club are currently sitting among the cream of the crop in Italy. Sassuolo are punching well above their weight. He lost his place for the match against AC Milan, but he came on the second half in a losing effort and has since played the full 90 minutes in the 3-2 win over Sampdoria. He's still maturing and growing as a player, but he's on the right track and van't Schip has tried to shoehorn him into the Greek eleven a couple of times now. Hatzidiakos recently made his 100th appearance for Alkmaar. His club are sitting in fifth place and have reached the latter stages of the Europa League. I haven't really seen him play, but the times I have he has looked good. Always eager to challenge for ball and prove his worth. He's one to watch. Manolas has looked assured and almost unbeatable when called upon, but Napoli have been making costly individual errors. Maksimovic has lacked confidence and match fitness, something that cost Napoli in the loss to Lazio. There was also Insigne's unnecessary sending off and Ospina's goalkeeping error that led to the penalty, and the defeat, against Inter. They have also dropped points against mid-table sides like Torino. Van't Schip has to stop making excuses for leaving him out of the national team. Frankly, he's making the wrong decision leaving him out. Retsos has barely played since making the loan move to Saint-Etienne. He's been injured since October. Those niggling injury issues have been a killer. It's a shame for someone so versatile and dependable in defense. Mavropanos was superb in Stuttgart's 5-1 win over Dortmund. Like Retsos, he seems to always be injured: he picked up a muscle strain recently that kept him out of the loss to Wolfsburg. He's one to watch. Sokratis remains out of favor at Arsenal and it would appear he's on his way out this January. Napoli are rumored to be interested. I still think he has something to offer, but his athleticism has been on the wane. His acceleration and vertical leap are things he should work at and improve. If not, he needs make up for it with better positional awareness. A warrior though, through in through, but his time with Greece may be over for good. Siovas would have been playing in second division Spain had it not been for the caps he was given with Greece. That goal against Kosovo saved him. He currently plays at Huesca who are bottom of the table. They often play spoiler, drawing games, but have only won once all season, with their only losses coming to top of table Real Madrid, Real Sociedad, and mid-table Athletic Bilbao. He has been playing non-stop for them, featuring in every minute since he has signed. Siovas is a left-footed player, a quality all too lacking among Greek center-backs. Van't Schip I think was wrong to banish him from the national team, but his time was coming to an end. Svarnas has played somewhat regularly for AEK, but he didn't feature in big matches against PAOK and Olympiacos. His performances in Europe have reflected those of the team overall. AEK have been really poor. The times I have seen him with Greece he has played well enough to at least merit consideration, but he is not someone at this stage in his career Greece can depend on. He needs to keep working to grow and improve as a player. Michailidis of PAOK has barely featured in Europe this season, but has had plenty of opportunities in Greece. He's not ready to play for national men's team and should continue his development at the u21 level for now. He seems to be a bright spot and his natural left-foot gives him an advantage. Stergiou of St. Gallen was born in Switzerland to Greek and Serbian parents. He is eligible to play for three countries, but so far has played for his country birth at every youth level. His club were the surprise package of Swiss football last season, top of the table pre-lockdown. I'm not sure he will ever feature for Greece. Ioannis Amanatidis was an assistant manager at St.Gallen before leaving for a role at PAOK. It's plausible he could influence his decision. Bakakis is just about the only right-back Greece has, but maybe through sheer grit and determination he can prove his worth. Greece is in need of an upgrade in this area of the pitch, but under van't Schip, Bakakis has grown in confidence and proven that we are not necessarily desperate for one. We are really thin on options here. Beyond Bakakis there is Rota, but he didn't seem to leave any impression with van't Schip upon his call up. He is Albania, but born in Greece. He seems to be playing regularly in Holland, but his club remain firmly in the bottom half of the table. Then there is Mavrias, but his career has been petering out since he left Panathinaikos for Sunderland in 2013. Greece must seek out other options in this position.
Midfielders: Zeca, the captain of Copenhagen FC, has been something of an ever present figure for club and adopted country. He fell out of favor with van't Schip after the colossal error that saw Liechtenstein draw with Greece in the 90th minute, but he appears to be back in the coach's good graces. He seems to always find that extra gear when you expect tiredness to have a toll on him. Dare I say, he's superhuman in that respect. He has pretty much played in every single match for his club, save for two losses when he was suspended with a red card. His club trail the league leaders Midtjylland, whom his club lost to in his absence, by 7 points as they currently sit 6th from the top. Kourbelis, who replaced Zeca as captain of Panathinaikos, scored what proved to be the winning goal over city rivals AEK. It was mishit, but he did well to make the late run and he showed good anticipation. That being said, I think Mantalos was a danger man and maybe he could have reacted more quickly or he could have shouted to a teammate to simply foul him. I felt against Olympiacos he should have kept track of Fortounis and should have made sure that he or someone else was paying attention to Fortounis when he made that run to score on the rebounded effort. It's these sort of things he needs to constantly work it. These are dangerman who need require special attention and who need to be fouled and harrassed. He needs to concentrate and take no prisoners. Bouchalakis was largely at fault for the loss to Porto. Olympiacos stood a real chance of making progression in the group, but Porto showed more grit and Olympiacos were sloppy. For someone who was made captain, you expect a lot more from him. Siopis has been a regular starter for Alanyaspor, where he plays alongside Tzavellas and Bakasetas. I have not seen him really play and can't comment much. Galanopoulos was something of a revelation in the 2-1 win over Finland in what was a dead rubber Euro qualifying game. Since then he has suffered badly from injury and has not played regularly for AEK. He has only played one full game so far this season in a 4-2 Europa League loss to Braga Bakasetas saw his stock rise significantly since making the move to Turkey. I have to admit I had my doubts about him in the past and even this season I thought he would struggle now that the manager who signed him over to Turkey left for Fenerbahce. He is certainly proving his doubters like myself wrong. Most notably, he scored twice in a vital win over Besiktas. His club Alanyaspor currently reside in the top five with 27 points at the midway point of the season. In fact they were the league leaders before a loss in their most recent game knocked them down to third. Mantalos was being offered to some clubs in the Middle East during the summer, but he ultimately stayed put. Like Galanopoulos, he played an absolute blinder in the 2-1 win over Finland and has been a key figure to van't Schip's plans ever since. He's someone with decent, albeit not great, technical class and who works hard on and off the ball for his team. Despite the loss to Panathinaikos, I felt he was still one of the best players on the park. However, his red card against Atromitos cost AEK that game and his suspension meant he was sorely missed in the following game in a loss to PAOK. He's undoubtedly a vital player for club and country. Pelkas signed for Fenerbahce after helping PAOK reach the final qualifying round of the UCL. He impressed me when he was at PAOK, but he has since fallen off my radar, but he often starts games and must be playing with aggression because he was suspended due to an accumulation of yellows for his most recent match.
Forwards: Pavlidis hasn't been in the kind of form that saw him light up last season. His club have been stuttering. They currently sit in and around the relegation zone. It looks as if his coach has now switched him from a central position to the left wing. Koulouris made the switch to Toulouse, but they were relegated last season and now he competes in Ligue 2! He wasn't in the squad for all of December, but he returned in a recent win over Paris FC. His form this season has been nonexistent: no goals, no assists. Fountas, like the others, is failing to find good form this season. Interestingly he played in a more withdrawn role in his team's latest win, providing an assist for the only goal of the game. Rapid Vienna now sit fourth in Austria, separated only by a point from the league leaders RB Salzburg. Donis has barely featured this season, mainly due to injury. He hasn't settled since leaving Stuttgart for Reims, the historic French club that gained her fame as finalist in the first ever European Cup final, losing to Real Madrid. Arguably our most gifted forward next to Limnios and Fortounis. Giakoumakis, in contrast to the others, has been scoring regularly since signing for VVV Venlo. He has scored 12 times this season in 16 appearances in both league and cup matches, but his club are dreadful. They lost 13-0 to Ajax and have only won twice all season! Limnios has been a shining star for Greece, more so than at PAOK, but since making the move to Koln he has not played regularly. He is mainly played as an impact player, if at all. Tziolis is a young star in the making at PAOK and has shown good progress this season, impressing a lot in the 3-1 win over Besiktas. However since then there has been less to be excited about. He's a young player still gaining experience and maturing. Luckily he is gaining valuable experience on the pitch at PAOK. Fortounis I imagine will play as a forward for Greece. I can't see van't Schip dropping Bakasetas, so Fortounis will probably play on the left wing in center forward. He's playing well but he never finishes the 90 minutes. This has been an issue with him for some time. He is generally viewed as the most gifted player of those currently considered for a place in the squad, but van't Schip hasn't gotten on well with the players from Olympiacos so far. Masouras has scored 6 times this season, which is a good return by his standards. He has rarely completed 90 minutes this season and lately he has been playing as a substitute. Mitroglou is rumored for a return to Olympiacos. I can't imagine he will be playing much any further. I think it's safe to say his playing days are nearly coming to an end.
Bakasetas is really enjoying his football these days. He scored a brilliant goal for his new club and they've been in a strong form since he signed for them: The goal is reminiscent of this one he scored last year against Galatasaray. Ever since his move to Turkey, he has been something special. I used to doubt him and question his merits in the Greek national set-up, but not anymore. He proved me wrong and I'm all the happier for it. Bravo to Bakasetas.
A report suggest van't Schip will call Manolas back into the team. He's a necessary player for us. Leaving him would be a big mistake. I think van't Schip should also leave the door open to Sokratis and Siovas too. No player should have the door shut in representing our country. https://www.sportime.gr/podosfairo/...-o-kostas-manolas-sto-blokaki-tou-fant-schip/
Tasos and Christos Donis both made their debuts at VVV-Venlo, the club where Giakoumakis has made his mark. Unfortunately the match ended in a 3-1 loss. I didn't catch the game, but there are some highlights that can be seen in the video below.
Now Sokratis is back in line for a return with the national side. https://www.sportime.gr/podosfairo/...-i-krousi-gia-epistrofi-ke-i-proti-antidrasi/ Good move.
According to OPENtv, both Sokratis and Manolas turned down van't Schip's offer to return. https://www.tanea.gr/2021/03/13/spo...epo-dikaiosan-idi-ton-sokrati-kai-ton-manola/ Disaster.
Manolas previously told van't Schip he wanted to continue playing for Greece; however, after recently meeting with his trusted advisors in Greece, he reneged on his word. Obviously he is bitter about the coach's decision that previously barred him from the team, but that should be water under the bridge and he should be doing what's best for his country, regardless of his issues with the manager. Instead, this seems to be a calculated political move, to the benefit of Olympiacos who are upset that the NT has become biased against them. Van't Schip isn't covered in glory here either. After kicking Manolas out for over a year, he has decided to call on Manolas back again bearing in mind he is facing an opponent that won their last game 6-0 against Germany. Players like Svarnas, just as Siovas made a point of saying, are not good enough for Greece. Most of the players are out of form. There is hardly anyone competing at a high level (beyond Manolas really). The regular goalkeepers won't be available or lack match fitness. Many of the players van't Schip has relied upon are not exceptional enough to compete against an opponent of this level. Everything is pointing to a bad result. We are seeing things take shape that may lead van't Schip to resign or give cause for the new president to fire him. That is very unfortunate. Mr. van't Schip deserves better than Greece. I wish him success wherever he goes. Any club would be lucky to have him. We are fools for setting him up to fail like this. I wish in Greece things were more professional, but sadly we are behind the times. The big clubs in Greece have teared the national side apart again. We are back to the pre-Rehhagel years.
Van't Schip has still left the door open to Sokratis and Manolas. He says they will come when they feel ready to return. With the current president of the FA more or less out of the picture, van't Schip doesn't hold the same standing as before. The manager is doing the right thing and hopefully we can move past all this nonsense. A lot is being asked of the other players in this match against Spain, it would have been nice to have had more experienced hands on deck.
Van't Schip signaled he would start Kyriakos Papadopoulos and Kostas Mavropanos at the heart of Greece's defense for the upcoming matches.
Greece will play a 4-2-3-1 system as follows: Vlachodimos Bakakis---Kyriakos---Tzavellas---Tsimikas Zeca---Bouchalakis Tziolis---Fortounis---Masouras Bakasetas Bakakis starts despite having only been called up at the last minute in what was thought to be a move to replace the injured Hatzidiakos; however, Hatzidiakos is still being considered for a start despite his injury, although Kyriakos Papadopoulos looks set to play. Tziolis is carrying an injury, but van't Schip wants him in the eleven and will wait until the very last minute to assess whether to play him. It's hard to imagine Greece getting a decent result. If Greece can keep the score line respectable, that will be enough. A heavy defeat may spell the end for van't Schip.
I must say I never expected Greece to snatch a draw. The expectation was a 2-0 or 3-0 loss, much like Greece had suffered against Italy in Euro qualifying, maybe worse given how Spain had beaten Germany. Spain were always going to have a goal in them and Greece did well to keep the score line within grasp; however, Greece were very poor in possession and never looked capable of penetrating Spain's half, let alone their penalty area. The penalty Greece was awarded was correctly given, but Greece did nothing to deserve it. Nothing short of luck made it possible for Greece to get on the scoresheet. For Spain this is disappointing. Greece were totally lucky to score, but Spain were denied space and for their part were not willing enough to take players on, nor take enough chances outside the box. Given Olmos shot off the bar, it's surprising Spain never really tried more of their luck from distance. Too often Spain tried to pass their way into the net. Luis Enrique has to be smarter than this. Congratulations to van't Schip who has done really well to get everyone working together and to keep everyone believing they could get something out of this game despite some notable absences and a general lack of form. Thank you and well done sir. For what it's worth, this a decent result that adds a little extra joy on day when Greece celebrates her bicentennial. The result aside, Greece will need to do a lot better than this because today's performance will not be good enough to challenge for a qualification place. I hope van't Schip tries to get that message across to his players because it will take more than luck to achieve anything beyond the odd result like this.
Greece needed to do a lot better, but couldn't. Several of the players lack playing experience and chemistry. The two shots on goal sums it all up for me. I think this team could use Ninis, who has looked good since returning to Greece with Volos. A player like him can get this team ticking, moving the ball from defense to attack with much greater purpose, and he can pull the odd rabbit out of the hat to win games. Fortounis is a talented footballer, but I have never held him as high in esteem as Ninis. Granted, Ninis is small, weak, slow, and often injured; however, he still remains the most gifted footballer to emerge out of Greece since Tsartas. That probably says more about the poor quality of players Greece has had in the past 20 years, but he is truly a gifted footballer. Christos Tziolis looks like another bright spot at least. In Limnios and Tziolis, Greece finally has decent wingers.
https://www.sport24.gr/football/ninis-o-maestros-toy-voloy.9162575.html There's no argument to be had that Greece needs him. Fortounis, Bakasetas, Mantalos, Tachtsidis, Bouchalakis, and others simply don't offer his intelligence and quality on the ball. The fact he is only second to Valbuena in making passes into the final third, bearing in mind Valbuena plays for the biggest club in Greece while Ninis plays for a newly promoted team, is a real testament to his abilities. Greece needs Ninis otherwise countries like Georgia will continue to outplay her.
An Olympiacos fansite made mention of the fact that restaurants were open the last time Mavrias had played a football match. Early in Mavrias' career, he showed good promise, but a move to Sunderland proved his undoing and his development has stagnated ever since. Last season he had gotten some matches in and was justified in his call-ups; however, this performance against Georgia must serve as the end of the line for him. Bakasetas can be incisive, but he's falling back into the kind of form which gave me reason to doubt his abilities in the first place. He's a good footballer, but his style is very direct and minimalist. He has a good eye for goal, but precious little else. Greece needs someone in the middle who can manage possession and build attacks. He's not that player. I have long advocated that Greece play a back three, with the center-backs given freedom to break forward and either support Greece's press or attempt to score from crosses into the box. It's not a crazy idea, especially given how advanced a position Giannoulis tends to take up on the left. I still think that's the way to go. Our biggest goal threat remains our center-backs. The last time Greece won, Siovas scored the winner and he scored that goal like a proper center-forward. Van't Schip is a good coach, but as a manager he has not proven as inspiring. His handling of some of the senior players has led to problems. For example, Siovas is someone I think Greece may need to contend with opponents like Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Banishing him was a mistake. This not all of van't Schip's fault. There are things going on behind the scenes that have led to a breakdown in trust between the FA and some of the players. These things happen in football even with some of the best clubs in the world, as has been the case with Barcelona lately. I hope we resolve these issues and I hope Zagorakis steers Greece in the right direction. So far he has chosen to stick with van't Schip. I believe he's doing the right thing, but van't Schip must also work to mend some broken bridges. There have been some things said about Manolas and his decision not to come back. I don't know the full story, but judging by his performance against Crotone, it's very obvious Manolas lacks rhythm and would likely have performed badly for Greece had he played. Sokratis too has lacked matches under his legs for almost a year now. He has been forced back into action at Olympiacos at a time when he's finding his feet again. I think van't Schip should get on the phone with these players and try to work out a way so that there is trust again. Everyone needs to pull in the same direction, let bygones be bygones, and try to help Greece achieve a higher ranking at a minimum to help improve qualification chances in the future. Whether Greece qualifies for Qatar or not is to me a second consideration. Let's be patient with our country and get back onto solid footing once again.
Lykogiannis scored a brilliant goal at the weekend. Brilliant set play. It set Cagliari on course to win the game against fellow relegation battlers Benevento. A very important result. Not bad.
A couple of intriguing friendlies are coming up. The first to Belgium, the second to Norway. It will be a great chance to see how Greece measures up. Van't Schip should be announcing a squad soon.
Belgium were perhaps unlucky not to have won, and they were without some of their most important players, but it was a good result for Greece. Some new faces like Androutsos just need time and experience. Both center-backs, Tzavellas and Kyriakos Papadopoulos, were in good form. Lukaku and Tzavellas even got into to it a bit. Tzavellas did well to stand up to him. That's the experience and character that this team is maybe lacking overall. We had that in Sokratis, Manolas, and Siovas, at least Tzavellas and Kyriakos have it too because without it this Greece team would be in a lot of trouble. The win over Norway was impressive. It shows Greece is back and van't Schip is leading the team in the right direction. Masouras is really coming into his own these past two matches. Names like Pavlidis, Giakoumakis, Fountas, Bakasetas, Fortounis, Vrousaj, and Donis need to follow Masouras' example. Androutsos did well to score too. The left-back and right-back combined to score that goal, in open play. Phenomenal! Simple things. More forward passes, usually played in behind the opposition defense, pressing opponents hard, and being organized when having to defend. A lot of it is one touch/two touch football. Less of the sideways pass and static movement, more width and runs in behind. My hat off to van't Schip. He adopted a 3-5-2, the same formation Holland are now playing. I have a fear that after Euro 2020, Holland might steal van't Schip from Greece. If not right away, then certainly after the 2022 campaign is over. This man deserves to lead a proper side like Holland and we Greeks are lucky to have him. Thank you Mr. van't Schip.