I still care about you…

By: Chris Paraskevas | November 1st, 2008

Honestly I do…no really…honest…

…

OK, OK, it’s time to again explain my lengthy absence from this glorious blog. Basically, university life (A.K.A The search for a girlfriend) has elevated itself on my priority list over the past few days, which, as I’m sure you can all understand, takes precedent for the moment…

Anyway, I lost my previous blog entry due to my stupidity in failing to save it (insert manic laughter at my technological incompetence here) and I’m about to be off to my grandparents’ place for a very traditional Saturday-afternoon Greek dinner.

Instead of retyping my entry, I thought I’d just bullet-point the main observations I’ve made as a fan of this shambolic club over the past few weeks:

- Giorgios Donis can’t be blamed for the sudden collapse of what was an already doomed campaign, thanks to a lack of financial investment, squad-building, administrative backing and general organization within the club. It would be too easy to point the finger at a 38 year-old who has embarked upon the biggest managerial gig of his life thus far without the necessary tools to balance a title challenge and/or a European campaign (though, typically, the incessant vulture that is the Greek football media has found him to be a most convenient scapegoat)

- It would be nice to see Angelos Basinas actually expend some energy in the cause of the jersey that he wears (convenient that he has suddenly injured himself during a time of need. Forgive my cynicism…actually, don’t…embrace it…Basinas is a lazy, lazy, lazy man.)

- Without Kyrgiakos, we’d probably be relegation candidates.

- With Kyrgiakos, we’re probably mid-table contenders at best (save for a miracle performed by Donis).

- Don’t believe me? Compare AEK’s squad depth and quality to that of Aris, Panionios, PAOK and Xanthi, who all currently have a more legitimate claim to European football next season.

PS. For all of you Aussie fans out there, there’s still no sign of Nathan Burns in the first-team squad, or in the U21s squad, for that matter. The wrong club at the wrong time for the 20 year-old, who has virtually disappeared since joining the Athenians during the summer. He did play in a mid-week friendly against Nea Ionia though…

Incidentally, here’s the squad for the Tripolis encounter, which is a must-win if Donis is to keep his job for another week. They should beat the Peleponnesians, unless Cardozo utterly dominates the centre of the park (which is a distinct possibility against a non-existent midfield):

Saja, Macho, Majstorovic, Αλεξόπουλος, Κουτρομάνος, Juanfran, Γεωργέας, Geraldo, Hetemaj, Πλιάτσικας, Ρίκκα, Pelletieri, Καφές, Λαγός, Scocco, Ζορμπάς, Blanco, Djebbour, Edinho, Παυλής