From now on, Panathinaikos “cooks” for a creative midfielder and winger who can also play as a top striker

The idea of ​​further strengthening the midfield axis next January had already existed in Panathinaikos for a few weeks.

But now it seems “suspended” after the very serious injury of Alexi Trouillet, who will be out for the rest of this season due to the total rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament and medial side he sustained in the game against Lamia.

Preparations for the winter transfer ‘window’ have started since the day the previous one closed and although January is still 2.5 months away, the ‘Greens’ continue to ‘scan’ players in the market, to add even more “depth” to your list.

Since additional options are needed in the fight for the domestic titles, a very compressed schedule with two games per week until the end of the playoffs begins in the spring.

However, after many years, as the start of this season shows, Panathinaikos will not just win a place in the European Cup, but will chase the title itself to the end.

Of course, the well-known journalistic “cliché” that the people on Panathinaikos “…you see players in all positions”, However, the first and fundamental “check” before January mainly concerns the acquisition of a central midfielder and another winger, as there are currently three “clean” options in the squad – Aitor, Palasios, Verbics – and under certain conditions the young Vagiannidis and one more solution is required.

He is looking for a creative midfielder and winger who can also play as a top striker

For the central midfielder, the “Klee” is looking for a creative midfielder who can play in a 4-3-3 formation on “8” and in a 4-2-3 on “10-1” formation. These are the two systems that form the “base” and the “constant” of this year’s Panathinaikos. As a backup option behind Bernard.

For the winger, the question arises of a player who has different qualities, provides extra speed and can support the position of the top striker in some games if necessary.

In any case, at the end of the previous transfer window Panathinaikos switched to a right winger (as an alternative mainly to Palacios on the right flank) who had contacts to take over from Watford’s Samuel Kalou, however without allowing the transfer to be completed.

The Nigerian’s name remains in the ‘green’ block, along with that of Norrland’s Danish midfielder Jakob Christensen, but they aren’t (will be) the only ones on the list.

This time around, Panathinaikos – like the rest of the teams – will have a very different plan in their transfer preparations as the 45-day hiatus in the leagues (from November 14 to December 28) due to the World Cup in Qatar offers an opportunity for one quieter search to have identified the main targets with the opening of the market on the first day of 2023.