Levadeiakos blackened AEK’s Christmas, Mitoglou saved the point in the 95′

He ended 2024 in the worst way AEK. THE Levadian detached 1-1 at OPAP Arena and knocked Matias Almeida’s team down to fourth place and -3 from the top.

Pedroso in the 57th minute with a penalty for handball by Hadjisafi put AEK in trouble, who saved the point in the 95th minute with Mitoglou.

Many missed opportunities for “Union”, which fell on the excellent Garavelis.

In the mind of the coaches

THE Matias Almeida he didn’t make many changes compared to the… league line-up of the last matches. Mitoglou and Vida remained stoppers, with Rota on the right and Pelios returning in place of Hadjisafi in the back four ahead of Strakosa. Simanski was selected as a defensive midfielder with Pineda and Ljubicic in a more creative role, while Fernandes was selected on the right and Martial on the left behind Piero.

On the contrary, the Nikos Papadopoulos lined up Levadeiakos without a classic forward. Liagas, Eramuspe and Katris were selected as a trio of stoppers, with Viho, Moreira, Kasso, Tsokai and Kosti in front of them and Pedroso and Baltsi promoted, as Osbolt was left on the bench and Zini out.

The match

Levadeiakos came in quite… bravely in the first minutes and I seemed to step better. Quickly, however, AEK took the reins and started to create phases looking for the quick goal to “unlock” the match.

Garavelis, however, looked invincible in the first half. In the 8th minute, he stopped Piero’s very powerful header with his feet, while in the 19th minute he said “no” from a distance first to Pelios and then to Ljubisic, keeping his goal intact.

The “Union” had two more very good moments, with Pelios and Martial from the left not making good finishes. With Fernandes as the pivot, who did everything very well except the final selection (sometimes causing some discomfort in the audience), AEK continued to besiege the well-organized Levadeiakos, who threatened… tepidly with two shots from Baltsis and Kostis, without particularly worrying Strakosa.

Matias Almeida threw Hadjisafi into the battle instead of the negative Pelios but the Iranian proved to be fatal. In the 55th minute, he waved and Tsakalides correctly awarded a penalty, which Pedroso converted into a goal for 0-1, making the evening even more difficult for AEK.

The Argentinian technician reacted throwing into the fray Mandalo, Pereira and Lamela instead of Rota, Ljubisic and Fernandes. The Argentinian, in a phase reminiscent of the goal against PAOK, was cleared by Martial’s turn, while in the 67th minute, Mandalos rattled the crossbar with a close header from Hadjisafi’s cross.

AEK besieged Garavelis’ shots and finally equalized in the 95th minute with Mitoglou’s close range shot. In the six minutes that followed, however, he could not find the goal of the upset and thus came to an end his 11-game winning streak against Levadeiakos.

MVP: Garavelis was the guardian-angel of Levadeakios with many great saves, especially in the first half.

The whistle: Tsakalides rightly pointed to a penalty on the hand of Hadjisafi, a difficult phase when AEK asked for a penalty for overturning Pieros at the end and the hold-ups. The referee was too meticulous, with many whistles that spoiled the rhythm.

Team compositions:

AEK (Almeida): ): Strakosa – Rota (60′ Pereira), Mitoglou, Mukudi, Pelios (46′ Hadjisafi) – Simanski (74′ Coita), Pineda – Fernandes (60′ Lamela), Ljubisic (60′ Mandalos), Martial, Piero.

On the bench are: Brignoli, Odubajo, Jonson, Gacinovic.

Levadeakos (Papadopoulos): Garavelis – Eramouspe, Liagas, Katris-Vichos, Moreira, Kassos, Kostis (83′ Plegas) – Tsokai – Pedroso (69′ Romo), Baltsi (62′ Gianniotas)

On the bench are: Groff, Mejia, Ozbolt, Yoke, Tsapras, Plegas, Berris

Referee: Alexandros Tsakalides

Assistants: Kolliakos, Papadakis

VAR: Vergetis (Matsoukas)