Reaching the quarter-finals of the Europa Conference League when they beat Gent 2-1 in Belgium, PAOK will take part in the draw in Nyon today (18/03) at 15:00 Greek time along with seven other teams.

His potential opponents are Roma, Leicester, Eindhoven, Marseille, Bodo Glimt, Slavia and Feyenoord with no restrictions as anyone can win against anyone even from the same country, in which case Eindhoven can be drawn against Feyenoord.

the Sportish brings you the profiles of the seven teams, the stars and their coaches, some of the reasons (if not all) Dikefalos would like to draw with, but also the reasons why he would like to avoid them.

Eindhoven

Because PAOK wants it: Eindhoven are a team that Dikefalos knows well. The two teams had been battling it out for Europa League groups last season, with both sides scoring at home, Dikefalos missing out and Olympiakos missing out in the knockout rounds. On the plus side for Dikefalos is the fact that they are close to the title at -2 from Ajax, meaning they will focus there too, which PAOK doesn’t do to a large extent.

Because PAOK doesn’t want it: Undoubtedly, this is a pretty good side who only lost twice in derbies in 2022 with Alkmaar and Ajax. She has had the same coach since 2020, German Roger Schmidt. As for the squad, she may have lost Malen (went to Dortmund) and Dumfries (went to Inter), but she kept Cody Gakpo on her squad, who is having an excellent season, but also Eran Zahavi, who was signed for Olympiakos.

In the preliminary round, they eliminated Maccabi Tel Aviv without much difficulty, while in the Europa League they finished third in the group, behind Monaco and Real Sociedad. He qualified for the Dutch Cup final where he will face Ajax. After Ajax they are the best Dutch team.

leicester

Because PAOK wants it: Leicester are not in their best phase compared to their last few years. He is currently ranked 12th in the Premier League and was eliminated by Nottingham Forest in the English Cup, while in the League Cup he was eliminated by Liverpool in the quarter-finals. Lucky for PAOK if it happens to achieve it this year and not in previous seasons as it travels to Old Trafford ahead of the first game of the quarter-finals to face Manchester United and possibly Rodgers to give its players a boost in the game to give breath to the Conference League.

Because PAOK doesn’t want it: No matter how bad it is, it’s still a Premier League team, which automatically makes it dangerous. Last season he faced AEK in the Europa League groups, whom he easily defeated at home and abroad, with Rogers making changes regarding the matches in Europe.

Their poor position in the league motivates them to seriously claim the Conference League to play in Europe and especially the Europa League next year. Coached by Rogers, she has many players in her roster including Vardy, Madison and Iheanacho. This year, the “Foxes” suffered from injuries to important footballers like Vardi.

Marseilles

Because PAOK wants it: Marseille are second in the French league and are struggling to stay there and qualify for the Champions League groups next season. If drawn with PAOK, he will be called upon to referee games with Dikefalos along with those with Montpellier, St Etienne and Paris scoring points for various reasons like them which is a bet for Sampaoli. PAOK hasn’t “left” the championship, it’s relatively secure in second place, and Europe is enticing it.

Because PAOK doesn’t want it: The “seals” are much better than last year. They finished fifth in the league last season and were left out in December when they finished behind Olympiakos in the Champions League groups. That year he finished third in the Europa League group behind Galatasaray and Lazio, while in the “16” of the Conference League he easily eliminated Karabakh and slightly more difficult Basel (two 2-1 wins). Their best player is Dmitry Paget, who looks fresh this season with nine goals and assists in all competitions.

Bodo / Glimt

Because PAOK wants it: Bodo / Glimt looks angry and in deficit in this year’s Conference League, but takes up his commitments in Norway for the cup in 10 days, while the quarter-finals have his first games for the championship. In winter he coped well with domestic competitions and Europe (he won the championship), but in the spring it’s not so easy. At the same time we are talking about a club that doesn’t have much European experience.

Because PAOK doesn’t want it: Yes, it’s a club with little European experience, but it’s a team capable of anything and that’s shown by the European circuit but also last year’s league title. Bodo/Glimt finished second in the group, only behind Roma, but won 6-1 in Norway.

In the knockout rounds he eliminated Celtic with two wins (3-1 and 2-0), while in the ’16’ he eliminated Alkmaar. He defeated it 2-1 and drew 2-2 in overtime in the Netherlands. On the negative side is the artificial turf that PAOK players have to contend with.

Slavia Prague

Because PAOK wants it: Slavia Prague comes from a championship not much stronger than that of Greece. In the championship she is -3 ahead of Viktoria Pilsen which means she will have her thoughts there as well as she will have a top derby with Pilsen before the first game.

In the cup he was eliminated in the quarter-finals against his compatriot Sparta. When the two teams compete against each other, there will be a big ranking battle in UEFA at the same time. Greece and the Czech Republic are fighting for 15th place against the background of the fifth ticket for the 2023/24 season. The “do or die” series will be decisive for our country’s European future.

Because PAOK doesn’t want it: It is the best attack in the Czech league and has conceded one more goal than the best defense, champions Pilsen. He has the same coach since 2018, consists mostly of Czech footballers and has a lot of homogeneity.

In their ranks is Mikael Krmencic, who played biceps for half a year on loan, but is not first fiddle in their attack, a sign of pluralism that the Czechs have the same attack. At the same time, he will be able to help his team scout PAOK as he knows him inside out.

He finished second in the Conference League, skipping the Berlin Union and trailing Feyenoord while eliminating Fenerbahce and LASK in the knockout games.

Feyenoord

Because PAOK wants it: Feyenoord has a good moon. It is 3rd in the league at -5 from second place leading to Champions League qualification and at -8 from the top. The Dutch will aim for a better place in the standings to even reach second place and qualify for the Champions League.

Because PAOK doesn’t want it: Feyenoord is a very strong team and a quality team, a classic Dutch team with which Dikefalos doesn’t have the best tradition. In the Conference League, they finished first and unbeaten in their group, while they have the third best offense in their league behind Ajax and Eindhoven with 59 goals.

Feyenoord also have Brian Linse who is their second top scorer with 11 goals and second top scorer with 8 assists. The top scorer is Till with 13 goals while Reese Nelson and Alireza Jahanbaks are in the squad.

Roma

Because PAOK wants it: Roma are not having their best time. Despite Jose Mourinho’s arrival, the negative results had caused a crisis in the team while the situation hasn’t improved in recent weeks.

Roma are sixth in the league (they may drop to eighth as they have more games) and were knocked out of the cup in the quarter-finals than Inter. In the Europa Conference League he finished first in the group, over Bodo Glimt, Zoria and CSKA Sofia while eliminating in the “16” Fitesse. All games are important, but he has a difficult exit after the quarter-finals rematch in the home of Napoli on April 16.

Because PAOK doesn’t want it: Because Roma, even if they are in a bad situation, should never be underestimated as they have a quality squad with a top manager. Gianniolo, Ibrahim, Pellegrini, Mkhitaryan and Veretu are some of the standout names. Furthermore, this event may be the only way for the Romans to go to Europe if they don’t manage to win a ticket through the championship.