PAOK is ready for anything

For PAOK, the only logic that could be used to counter the away game against Lamia was that the big game against Gent in Toumba in the 16th of the Conference League will follow on Thursday.

With regard to the postponed derby with AEK in OAKA, Razvan Lucescu again changed almost his entire team and started in his starting XI – apart from Paschalakis, who will not be included in the rotation – only with Ingi Ingasson and Leo Zampa.

In the end, neither the many changes, nor the heavy rain that fell in Lamia, nor the performance of the hosts made Dikefalos create. PAOK has achieved a victory – the first after three draws in a row – without making an effort, without making an effort and above all without making a lot of effort despite the difficult weather conditions.

He is spoiled by -12

Lucescu’s team finally advances to the playoffs of June 2^the Position with 7 points difference to 3rd AEK and 8 from Aris, but also at -12 from the top and Olympiakos.

It is this -12 of the red-whites that finally “spoils” PAOK’s image in the league, but everyone knows that it arose during that disastrous period from mid-November to early December in the first half of the season.

He found his balance, albeit slowly

Although it was late, PAOK finally found their balance and finished the second round of the championship with 10 wins and 3 draws, unbeaten in the last 14 games of the tournament.

Dikefalos collected 9 points more than in the first round and one more than Olympiakos in the second round of the championship. That he has failed to close the gap at the top does not call into question his overall transformation into a side much closer to his coach’s demands than at the start of the season.

Europe is a big challenge

What will happen in the playoffs is of little interest to Lutsescu and his players today, who have a big challenge ahead of them. Namely, to reach the quarter-finals of a European tournament.

For PAOK, the game against Gent on Thursday is an absolute priority. Because of this, Lutsescu has managed his squad at Lamia, resting some of his players (with first and best Diego Biseswar not playing a minute) and sharing time with others like Andrija Zivkovic, who came on after missing two games.

What is important for PAOK is that with many changes in its composition and the bad weather conditions in the first half, it has not changed the image that has shaped it lately. He tried to place the ball, develop his game rationally and correctly managed the score.

Zampa from the old

Lucescu explained that he worried about his team’s image in the final 20-25 minutes of the game as he gave the hosts a few chances. However, the Romanian has many positives for the rest of the game. One of them is definitely Leo Zampa’s appearance, which reminded me of the player PAOK acquired in the summer of 2018.

The PAOK coach has said at an innocent moment that the Brazilian’s elements in his team are no longer extreme and he mainly means his ability to play ‘one on one’. Zampa made an excellent goal start for his team and was created in almost all stages of Dikefalos.

If Lucescu manages to get the 23-year-old back to the level he was before his serious injury, then the benefit to PAOK will be huge. For the time being, the Brazilian is fighting και and seriously against it. But it has to perform well and that’s the hardest part.