Bajevic Slams ‘Behaviour’ Of AEK Athens Players; Calls For Tachtsidis Calm

By: Chris Paraskevas | February 15th, 2009

In cooperation with Goal.com:

AEK Athens manager Dusan Bajevic has slammed his players following his side’s dramatic 1-0 win over last-placed Thrasyvoulos on Saturday.

At the post-match press conference, the Serbian manager called for changes to the ‘behaviour’ of some his players on the pitch but wouldn’t single out individuals for criticism.

The Athenians are chasing European football this season and would widely have been expected to score a comfortable victory over Thrasyvoulos, the bottom team in the league.

However, a combination of injuries and suspensions weakened the home side, who struggled to break down their relegation-threatened visitors and were fortunate not to fall behind themselves on two occasions.

“It was an ugly performance on our part,” Bajevic said. “That which we deserve is the three points.

“To be honest I thought it was going to be a difficult match because of the shortages but I didn’t think it was going to be that bad.

“The competitive behaviour of some of the players needs to change; some of the players didn’t try as much as they could have.

“There is no need to say any names.”

A Time For Change?

Despite a rather flat performance, AEK rallied in the closing stages of the match, forcing a succession of chances and finally breaking down their opponents.

The breakthrough arrived in the 92nd minute when teenager Panagiotis Tachtsidis turned and shot brilliantly on the edge of the penalty box.

Even that late salvation act wasn’t enough to please for Bajevic, who has hinted at changes as a result.

He continued, “I want to give chances to other players.

“We can’t continue like this if we see that we can’t win with certain players.”

Tachtsidis Plea

When quizzed about his 18 year-old starlet Tachtsidis, Bajevic reacted by calling for calm amongst media quarters and fans following his headline-grabbing winner.

With some media representatives at the press conference quipping that the manager had “forgotten” about the youngster in the wake of the poor team performance, the AEK manager proceeded to point out that there were other deserving players who also had avoided attention.

One name that he brought up was that of Australian prodigy Nathan Burns, who looked set to make his first appearance for the club since his summer arrival, only to be told to retake his place on the bench despite having stripped down to his playing kit on the sidelines.

“[Tachtsidis] is not forgotten,” Bajevic said. “What you are doing is wrong.

“You want everything; and I want everything but there are some things that don’t allow you to immediately use a player.

“Tachtsidis is the future of AEK and the club are expecting a lot of him; leave the boy to calm.

“I have not forgotten him and there are other players who are deserving, just as he is.

“The same applies to Nathan Burns and other younger players, with whom we need to know what will happen.”