He kept a clean sheet in Split and got the upper hand for his playoff qualification Conference League o PAOK! His team Razvan Lucescudespite being threatened enough by the superior Hajduk, who had two goals with Livaja, remained “standing” in Croatia and returns to Thessaloniki with 0-0 and the qualification advantage.
‘
Debut for him Magomed Ozdoev who came on in the 79th minute instead of Tsigara, Ekong was excellent as he saved Kotarski on two occasions.
On August 17th in Toumba, the rematch where PAOK fans are expected to give a thunderous “attendance” in the stands in order to help their team find a breather from the groups.
In the minds of the coaches:
That 4-2-3-1 Ivan Leko chose to line up Hajduk against PAOK. Lucic in goal with Moufi, Sarlia, Fero and Melniak in defense. Sigur, next to Krovinovic in the axis and Odjica Ofoe a little further forward. Mlakar with Sahiti at the ends and Marco Livaya at the top.
PAOK lined up with three changes Razvan Lucescu in “Polywood”. Kotarski in goal, with Ketziora, Koulierakis, Ekong and Baba Rahman in the back four. Felipe Soares and Tsingaras the two defensive midfielders, Narey on the right, Zivkovic on the left and Constantelias behind the only forward, Brandon Thomas.
The match:
The start on the grass of “Polywood” was quite dynamic with Hajduk having her first good moment in 2′. THE Sahiti he stepped into the area from the left and crossed, but Kotarski blocked before Livaya could intervene.
Then the PAOK took measures on the playing field with Tsingara and him Felipe Augusto to organize the match. The first good moment came in the 5th minute with Živković making the cross, Koulierakis jumping higher than everyone and catching the header which was blocked by the Hajduk goalkeeper.
The scene shifted from the other end with Hajduk winning a corner which was taken by Ofo. Sahiti managed to take the header from Ekong but Kotarski made the stop. The biggest chance of the first half belonged to Hajduk.
Sigur took the ball on the shaft, saw his options, weighted his foot and with a … thunderbolt rattled Kotarski’s right crossbar.
The PAOK team made a reaction with him Cricket in the 14′ to send the ball out after a steely place in a turn by Constantelia, while a minute later, Felipe Soares, took the ball, passed to Constantelia, who immediately to the right of Narey whose turn ended up in the arms of Lucic.
The tempo dropped noticeably with both teams trying to keep a clean sheet in defense and PAOK shifting their play to the left after Lucescu swapped Narei with Zivkovic.
In the 31st Naray came back to the right and PAOK took a very big chance. Explosive energy from the German winger and an advance towards the Hajduk area, a beautiful turn, but Constantelias did not have time to put his foot with the ball passing parallel.
The last moment for the first part, came in the first minute of stoppage time, with Mlakar shooting the ball to counter and leaving for a corner which went untapped, with 0-0 be the result of the first part.
PAOK’s entry into the second half was very bad with Hajduk threatening with Livaya. The captain of the home team crossed from the left to the right, the ball was deflected and ended up at Kotarski’s right crossbar.
The hosts intensified their pressure and in the 52nd minute, after a mistake by Ekong, Mlakar came out at the back of the defense, made a header which was bad and went into the arms of Kotarski.
A minute later, Mr Livaya he missed an incredible opportunity to put his team ahead. His crosses Sahiti with a foul at the penalty spot, Livaya made a header and the ball went just wide.
The momentum was maintained for Hajduk however PAOK with Lucescu’s changes became more compactwith Schwab and Ozdoev to enter the match.
From that point onwards, PAOK tried to find spaces and stepped several times in an area without claims, while in the 90+1′ after a corner won by Hajduk, the ball reached Krovinovic at the second post with Ekong making the projection and saving his team’s home and the 0-0 to stay until the end.
MVP: Hard to find the top player for PAOK in Split. The players of the “double head of the north” did not reach their… peak of performance, but if someone had to be distinguished it would be Trost-Ekong. The Nigerian, with the exception of the 49′ phase when he inadvertently turned the ball to the spot where Sahiti was lurking, was even. Very good interventions in places where the ball was “burning” with the top one being that of Krovinovic in the 90+3′ where he intervened literally at the last moment.
The elevens of the match:
PAOK (Razvan Lucescu): Kotarski- Ketziora, Koulierakis, Ekong, Baba- Felipe Soares (72′ Schwab), Tsigaras (79′ Ozdoev)- Narey (61 Tyson), Zivkovic, Constantelias (79′ Murg)- Brandon Thomas (61′ Samata)
Left on the bench were: Z. Zivkovic, Talikhmanidis, Michaelidis, Murg, Tyson, Vieirinia, Schwab, Ozdoev, Vrakas, Samata, Rafa Soares, Jimas
Hajduk (Ivan Leko): Lucic-Moufi, Sarlia, Fero (79′ Diallo), Melniak-Sigur, Krovinovic-Sahiti (67’Dolcek), Mlakar, Ojica (79′ Kalic)-Livaja
On the bench: Cilic, Diallo, Kalic, Benraju, Mikanovic, Elez, Mikanovic, Dolcek, Brajkovic, Kaveli, Laws, Tsubelic, Cvic.
Watch the film of the match from the match center of sport-fm.gr
Source: Sport Fm
I am currently a news writer for News Bulletin247 where I mostly cover sports news. I have always been interested in writing and it is something I am very passionate about. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and spending time with my family and friends.
