What do Turkey, Sweden and Moldova have in common? All have placed a representative in the group stage of the current Champions League. The fact may seem trivial, but these countries, despite their low position in the UEFA rankings (19th, 23rd and 33rd), have done better than Greece. Eliminated in the third qualifying round, Olympiakos could not reach the pools.
This small earthquake for the Hellenic Republic, absent for the second time at this stage in the 21st century, illustrates the continuous decline of Greek football. PAOK, traveling to Marseille in the quarter-finals of the Europa League Conference, Thursday April 7, is the only survivor on the European scene.
Tomorrow’s coming from our plane window #UECL #PAOK #OMPAOK #Reloaded
PS Just landed! pic.twitter.com/GUz9mVYsyW
— PAOK FC (@PAOK_FC) April 6, 2022
Although it has often been present in the Champions League, Olympiakos only makes up the numbers and has not reached the eighth since 2013-2014. In the last three editions, he has only won twice. Worse, when AEK Athens took over in 2018-2019, he broke an embarrassing zero point. “The financial crisis [en 2008] swept away the financial power of the clubs“, points out Martial Debaux, journalist specializing in Greek football for the Footballski media.
The observation is clear: until 2007, Greece had two direct tickets for C1 chickens. The results at half mast even got the better of the only sesame for the group stage in 2016. Now, the Greek champion must go through the preliminary rounds. “The transfer window and the preparation start much earlier, the simple fact of going to chickens is very difficult“, continues the specialist. Last year, Olympiakos had overcome three rounds of play-off to join the pools, and finish in that of Manchester City, Porto and Marseille, directly qualified for the groups.
Like a vicious circle, these difficulties are the consequence of dated sports policies. “Clubs are piling on older players and haven’t jumped on the modern football wagon, based on buying and selling youngsters“, he develops. A simple glance at the workforce of Olympiakos corroborates his words: Kenny Lala, Yann M’Vila, Mathieu Valbuena or Youssef El-Arabi, old acquaintances of Ligue 1, are all Even if they remain competitive, it is impossible to derive financial added value from them.
Their presence slows down, in a way, the emergence of young Greeks. “The clubs do not trust them enough: at 21 or 22, they have no professional experience“, unfolds Martial Debeaux. The selection suffered directly from these delays in ignition. Victorious at Euro 2004 to everyone’s surprise, Greece has since been advancing at a slow trot.
“Philosophically, the Greeks give the impression of thinking that everything goes through defensive identity, with warriors on the ground”
Martial Debeaux, Greek football specialist for Footballskiat Franceinfo: sports
In addition to the exploit of 2004 led by Otto Rehhagel, the Pirate Ship has had some successes. At the 2014 World Cup, the selection stopped at the gates of the quarter-finals and was led by the very rigorous Fernando Santos. But since then, it’s been a dead calm. Greece no longer qualified for a major competition, even if the Euro has, in the meantime, expanded to 24 teams.
The thesis of the generation gap can also be mobilized. Old hands Kostas Manolas and Sokratis are on the decline, and goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos is the only starter at a major club, Benfica. After this observation, is Greek football really in trouble? The endemic violence around the clubs does not help. Images of the PAOK president with a gun on a pitch in 2018 have gone around the world. Field invasions or fights in the stands are so frequent that the Ministry of Sports announced in February the closure of all supporters’ groups.
Reasons for hope remain, all the same, in the midst of this slump. “Olympiakos have made a psychological breakthrough by keeping their coach Pedro Martins, even if he was not champion in 2019. He is now finishing his fourth season, it’s unheard of!“, continues Martial Debeaux. Above all, the famous UEFA coefficient is recovering. Over the season, Greece has more points than Switzerland, Scotland and Belgium, yet better off over the last five years.
PAOK’s epic in the Europa League Conference is no stranger to this. In this competition, the Greek clubs have the means to compete and aim, at least, for the quarter-finals. Unknown in France, the Salonika club eliminated La Gantoise in the previous round. In full development, the team coached by Razvan Lucescu will soon be equipped with a new modern stadium. The symbol of Greek football advancing at its own pace.