UEFA Europa League: Atletico Madrid vs. Aris Thessaloniki – Full Time Report
With the second half kicking off, the home side looked to be in complete advantage of the game as they were being helped by not only the Spanish soil, but also the crowd that was chanting their name throughout the game. The current
champions of the Europa League were ready to face the Greeks as they were already leading them 2-1 after the first half.
As the second half kicked off, none of the coaches decided to make a change as they both looked to be very satisfied with their team’s performances in the first half. The Greeks were now concentrating more towards attacking rather
than being deployed around their own 18-yard box like in the first half of the game. It was simply clear that they were in Madrid to win the game and not to draw or lose it.
The Spaniards, on the other hand, were taking full advantage of their home crowd and home ground and by moving the ball around superbly; they were taking good control of the game as the centre midfield was easily pulling the strings.
Despite the fact that the Spanish side were controlling the game just the way they wanted and the strikers were full of energy throughout the game, the Greek side managed to find a way through the defensive lines of the home team.
Danijel Cesarec was the one who found the ball at his feet inside the penalty area and while running towards David de Gea, Alvaro Soto brought him down and awarded the Greeks with a penalty kick. Now, the away team had the advantage and they were ready to
take it as the penalty kick was awarded to the visitors. Sergio Pardo aka Koke, the goal scorer from the first half, was to take the penalty as the whole crowd was left stranded after the referee’s decision.
Koke shot the ball with his stronger right foot and got it past David de Gea to the lower left corner. Despite the fact that the Spanish goalkeeper was going the right way and knew where Koke was going to strike the ball, the ball
still went in and the score line looked to be sensational as it came back to level terms for both the sides.
The game was simply far from over for both sides as the action and drama had only just begun after the second goal. With the second goal coming from a penalty and with the Spanish side being a little disturbed at the back, the
Greek visitors took advantage of the situation and managed to take control of the game as they held the ball for longer periods while the Spaniards were left chasing shadows.
After keeping the ball for a longer time, they would not just give the ball away with a bad pass; they would press and take shots on goal so that they have time to recover while the goalkeeper brings the ball to take the goal kick.
With such outstanding display of football from the Greek team, their coach decided to change tactics as he brought on another holding midfielder Carlos Ruiz for Danijel Cesarec so that they could play counter attacking football. The tactics did eventually
work and during the 81st minute, the visitors finally found a way past the Spanish defence and Nikos Lazaridis managed to hit a very good left footed shot from the penalty area, as the Greek side took the lead with only 9 minutes remaining in full
time.
As the Greeks took the lead with only 9 minutes remaining, it was clear that it was going to be hard for the home team to equalize as the visitors were defending extraordinary well, particularly after the tactical substitution
by their coach. The game ended after a lot of drama and excitement as the home side lost the game after being 2-1 up in the first half, and then being 2-3 down after the second.
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