PAOK U20s punished in the final minutes
The troops of Pablo García and Mirosław Sznaucner started strongly into the encounter, creating opportunities to score from early on. In the 3rd minute, Kozak took a direct free kick from an angle, forcing a difficult save from the visiting goalkeeper with the help of woodwork. Eleven minutes later, Gargalatzidis was set up brilliantly, went one on one with the goalkeeper but his shot was denied by the post.
PAOK remained in command, having camped around their rivals’ box. In the 22nd minute, following a corner, Chatzidimpas missed the target by a few inches. In minute 39, Gargalatzidis wasted his shot with only the keeper to beat.
The complexion of the encounter didn’t change after the interval. The “Double-Headed Eagle” remained in command, settled on the ball and multiplied their visits to Atromitos’s box. As the match unfolded, the visitors opted for counters.
In the 70th minute, Atromitos came close to the opener, but Muca produced a spectacular save and then Dimitriou cleared the ball off the line. In the final stretch of the encounter, PAOK pressed up higher looking for the winner, but it was Atromitos who managed to break the deadlock with a counterattack in the 87th minute.
The “Double-Headed Eagle” youngsters suffered their first defeat in this season’s Super League U20. Atromitos caught up with PAOK in the standings (both at 23 points), trailing Panathinaikos by three (26 p.).
PAOK U20: Muca, Dimitriou, Diamantis, Tsaousis, Lyratzis, Balogiannis, Chatzidimpas, Kozak, Papadopoulos, Gaitanidis, Gargalatzidis.
