Since Olympiacos were close, they will now push to overtake

If we have anything to thank Carvalhal for this short time on the red and white bench, it is his intelligence.

The Portuguese doesn’t mix things up, he doesn’t look for surprises, he takes the positive aspects of Martinez’s work and adds what was missing.

Normally, coaches who replace a colleague in the middle of the season approach things with variations, on the one hand to bring about an awakening, a competition between the players, and on the other hand to show a different – their – perspective on things.

In contrast to Bacca Topola, i.e. in Serres, he used the eleven players who make up the main team. Biancone was the only one able to replace the suspended Rezzo, which is usually no surprise.

Same faces, new tactics from Carvalhal

That’s in theory. There are differences within the field, catalysts for Olympiacos’ dominance. For the second time in a row, the Red and Whites ensured great excitement from the first to the last minute.

They are all involved in the basic functions of defense and attack. The defense starts from the opponent’s area, in addition to El Kaabi and Masoura, who used the plan correctly, and Fortunis, Pontense, who are always typical in their blocking tasks. Ese and Kamara completed this superbly executed “high press,” meaning Panserraikos crossed half the field very few times.

In general, Olympiacos Piraeus almost eliminated the chances of danger, had the ball at their feet throughout, let it move around the home team’s penalty area, patiently turned it over and looked for its moment against a multi-faceted and three-zone defense. The result was achieved.

Carelessness is punished, seriousness is rewarded

In the Greece of… “Come on, baby, who is Panserraikos” the answer is simple when you look at the results: AEK led 0-2 in the quarter at Agrinio, leaving two points at the end.

Panathinaikos took the lead in Peristeri, remained beaten and had… enormous pressure on Jovanovic and his players.

Olympiakos seems to be putting the storm behind them and regaining self-confidence. “We played perfectly,” Carvalhal said into the camera, he believed it, his body language confirmed it, he saw his team dominate and not make the mistakes that two of the other three title contenders had made.

The first conclusions about Biancone

From the set to the faces, an attempt is made to expand the options. Biancone played in the starting eleven for the 2nd time, due to Panserraiko’s tactics we didn’t see him in moments of pressure, but he is calm with the ball at his feet, he can start attacks.

The first pass seems to be one of his strengths, this particular element of his game has been mentioned in analyzes of his “full” year with Troyes in the Champions League in the 2021-2022 season.

The sequel will show whether he can be a key option.

Masouras “speaks” with his statistics

When Podense were not at their best and unsuccessfully tried to find gaps on the left, the ever-ready Masouras provided the solution.

He pointedly ignores those who don’t recognize what he brings to the Olympic and national teams (basic everywhere, in both cases with all coaches), he is regularly error-free, and at times his weaknesses are overshadowed by his statistics.

He narrowly misses the great chance to make it 0-1 with a diagonal shot, and in the next moment, as if nothing had happened, he starts the attempt that leads to the decisive penalty…

The luxury of… El Arabi Street

The note rightly ends with Youssef El Arabi. The 37-year-old Moroccan isn’t one to terrorize opposition defenses, but he also doesn’t waste his time playing in Olympiakos’ B team and upsetting Mathieu Valbuena.

In games where the goal is not scored, he is more than necessary. He has lost his breakthrough, but he understands like no other how to read the defense, move intelligently without the ball and, of course, execute.

It is a luxury for the red and white bench to have such a footballer and as I pointed out in the introduction, Carvalhal uses football logic to reset its team to… factory settings.

Ferentsvaros’ current analysis is worthless

There are currently no analyzes applicable to Ferentsvaros and the prospect of a long appearance in the Conference League.

Firstly, because in mid-February we don’t know how the two teams will compete against each other. Secondly, what we know about Olympiakos is that they will have at least three new faces on their European roster, so safe conclusions at the right time.

Atromitos, who represents the next obstacle for Piraeus, is unbeaten with Ilic at the end of the bench and the reaction he showed against Panathinaikos proves the difficulty of the undertaking…