The encounter against the Russians was a priori a very tough one, but PAOK are the ones feeling disappointed not to have gotten something more that the mere draw point. Mainly because they were playing at home and because they were came closer to breaking the deadlock in those few minutes that the game opened up. There will also be much talk about Dimitar Berbatov getting brought down in the edge of the box. He was in control of the ball and the rival defender clearly pushed him but the referee waved “play”.

Igor Tudor made several changes to his starting line-up. Panagiotis Glykos, Stelios Malezas, Giannis Skondras and Jairo all were solid. The Greek goalkeeper recorded several timely interventions especially around his area, Malezas intercepted all Krasnodar’s attempts in his domain and also went for a through-ball that Stefanos Athanasiadis missed by a few inches. Skondras held firm on the right side, while the Brazilian forward facilitated his team’s attacking play and engaged in all duels.

He was the one to tee up Garry Rodrigues for an opener in a first half lacking excitement. FC Krasnodar were not threatening either. The match became a bit more lively after the interval. The “Double-Headed Eagle” came closer to scoring through Eric Sabo, Ergys Kace and Róbert Mak, while Mamaev tried his luck with a powerful shot that was saved by Glykos. Both sides ended the encounter with 10 players each, as Jędrzejczyk and Jairo were sent off in the 88th and 89th minute respectively.

The two teams will meet again in a fortnight in Krasnodar and that match will probably decide which one will gain the upper hand for qualification to the next stage.

Line-ups:

PΑΟΚ: Glykos,Skondras, Malezas,Vítor (Leovac 46′), Costa, Rodrigues, Kace, Sabo, Pelkas (Mak 72′), Jairo, Athanasiadis (Berbatov 57′)

FC Krasnodar: Dykan, Strandberg, Jędrzejczyk, Granqvist, Kaleshin, Torbinski (Gazinskiy 85′), Ahmedov (Mamayev 65′), Laborde, Joãozinho, Kaboré, Smolov (Ari 63′)