The last matchday of 2024 for the Europa League left Olympiacos and PAOK with mixed feelings. The Reds extended their unbeaten streak to 5 matches (they have only lost in the opening match to Lyon), but the third consecutive draw prevented them from getting closer to the top 8, and although they are 2 points behind 8th place, they are also 2 points ahead of 25th!
PAOK, with their second consecutive win, moved up to 22nd place and hopes that one more win will get them into the playoffs.
In the Conference League, Panathinaikos also celebrated their second consecutive win, climbed to 18th place, and now qualification is in their hands, with their final matchday being a home game against Dinamo Minsk.
Olympiacos – Twente 0-0 (Europa League)
Olympiacos had the opportunity to secure qualification to the Europa League playoffs from the 6th matchday but missed it.
The Piraeus team hosted Twente, who are low in the Europa League standings and had just suffered a 6-1 defeat to PSV in the Netherlands, but they ended up drawing 0-0 with the Dutch. Twente won a penalty in the 9th minute (handball by Retso) but Tzolakis saved Ricky van Wolfswinkel’s shot.
In the 40th minute, Kostoulas won a penalty, but Twente’s goalkeeper said “no” to El Kaabi.
In the second half, Olympiacos, after some substitutions by Mendilibar, played better but couldn’t avoid their third consecutive draw and are now in 15th place with 9 points.
Olympiacos’ next European matches
23/01: Porto-Olympiacos
30/01: Olympiacos-Karabakh
PAOK – Ferencváros 5-0 (Europa League)
PAOK hadn’t won a home European match since August 22, and despite playing with their backs against the wall, they truly demolished Ferencváros.
The Hungarian champions were 2-0 down after 30 minutes, and after failing to score in the 45th minute (hitting the post on their first shot), they were thrashed in the final 20 minutes with Despodov providing assists, winning a penalty, and scoring for the triumphant 5-0.
PAOK’s next European matches
23/01: PAOK-Slavia Prague
30/01: Real Sociedad-PAOK
Europa League standings
Detailed Europa League standings (6th matchday)
- Lazio (14-3) 16
- Athletic (11-2) 16
- Anderlecht (11-6) 14
- Lyon (15-7) 13
- Eintracht (12-8) 13
- Galatasaray (15-11) 12
- Man. United (12-8) 12
- Rangers (13-7) 11
————————————– - Tottenham (11-7) 11
- Steaua (7-5) 11
- Ajax (14-6) 10
- Real Sociedad (10-6) 10
- Bodo (10-9) 10
- Roma (8-5) 9
- Olympiacos (5-3) 9
- Ferencváros (11-10) 9
- Viktoria Plzen (10-9) 9
- Porto (12-10) 8
- Alkmaar (9-9) 8
- Union Saint-Gilloise (5-5) 8
- Fenerbahçe (7-9) 8
- PAOK (10-8) 7
- Midtjylland (5-5) 7
- Elfsborg (8-11) 7
—————————————————— - Braga (7-10) 7
- Hoffenheim (5-8) 6
- Maccabi (7-12) 6
- Besiktas (6-13) 6
- Slavia (5-7) 4
- Twente (4-7) 4
- Malmö (6-12) 4
- Ludogorets (3-8) 3
- Karabakh (4-14) 3
- RFS (5-12) 2
- Nice (6-14) 2
- Dynamo Kyiv (1-15) 0
*The teams finishing in positions 1-8 will qualify directly to the “16” phase. The teams in positions 9-24 will play against each other in double-leg playoffs. The first matches will be held at the homes of teams 17-24, and the return legs will be at the homes of teams 9-16. The last 12 teams will be eliminated.
The New Saints – Panathinaikos 0-2 (Conference League)
First away win for Panathinaikos in the League Phase of the Conference League, first goal for Fotis Ioannidis in an official PAO match since August 22 (and his stunning goal against Lens).
The Greens knew they had no margin for error, entered with great determination, and in the 15th minute, Djúrišić made it 0-1. After the goal, PAO’s pressure eased, but the Welsh team couldn’t threaten.
The match was decided in the 62nd minute when Djúrišić won a penalty, which Ioannidis converted successfully…
Chelsea (21-4) 15
Vitória Guimarães (12-5) 13
Fiorentina (17-6) 12
Legia Warsaw (12-2) 12
Lugano (9-5) 12
Shamrock Rovers (11-4) 11
Cercle Brugge (13-6) 10
Jagiellonia (10-4) 11
Rapid Vienna (8-4) 10
APOEL (7-4) 10
Djurgården (8-6) 10
Paphos (9-5) 9
Gent (8-7) 9
Olimpija Ljubljana (7-6) 9
Heidenheim (6-6) 9
Copenhagen (6-2) 8
Betis (5-5) 7
Panathinaikos (6-7) 7
Vikingur (6-7) 7
Borac (4-7) 7
Omonia (7-7) 6
Mlada Boleslav (4-6) 6
Hearts (4-7) 6
Basaksehir (8-11) 5
Celje (10-11) 4
Molde (6-8) 4
Bačka Topola
Astana (3-7) 4
Helsinki (3-8) 4
St. Gallen (9-16) 4
Noah (3-12) 4
The New Saints (3-7) 3
Dinamo Minsk (4-9) 3
Linzer (3-13) 2
Petrocub (2-11) 1
Larnaca (2-12) 0
*The teams finishing in positions 1-8 will qualify directly to the “16” phase. The teams in positions 9-24 will play against each other in double-leg playoffs. The first matches will be held at the homes of teams 17-24, and the return legs will be at the homes of teams 9-16. The last 12 teams will be eliminated.
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