Before the Super League Interwetten kick-off, PAS Giannina’s participation in the top flight was one of the big question points. Because while last season they impressed in Super League 2 and were promoted, due to Covid-19 the club did not play any games for six months, and so it was unclear how the team would shape up.

PAS Giannina are the team with the smallest budget in the league, it has a coach who has no top flight experience, and squad is not an impressive one on paper.

From September onwards, however, the ‘Gianniotes’ have surprised many with their competitive achievements. They may be down in 10th place with only 21 points, but the team’s style of play on the pitch is excellent. The team has a clear plan and philosophy, and tries to play its own brand of football against every opponent. So far it seems that they have what it takes to achieve its main goal of remaining in the division.

It is also important to mention that the Gianniotes managed to pull off a great result in the quarter-finals of the Greek Cup, eliminating Atromitos after two great games of football between the two clubs.

All of the above is the work of Argyris Giannikis. A coach who has received a German footballing education, working in Germany both as an assistant coach and as the head coach at Aachen and Essen, came to Ioannina and he has gained the trust of the club’s management after starting to implement his plan from last year.

The squad is mostly made up of Greek players, with the likes of Pamlidis, Eleftheriadis, Kargas, Pantelakis, Choutesiotis, Saliakas and Kartalis forming the core, but there are also a clutch of quality foreign players, such as Erramuspe, Peersman, Krizman and Leo Jean-Baptiste.

The team has found its chemistry and the players their roles on the pitch with Pamlidis and Eleftheriadis the club’s top scorers with five and four goals respectively, while on the creative front Pamlidis, Kartalis, Erramuspe and Peersman all leading the assists column of stats with two apiece.

In the match against the Double-headed Eagle, which will be played in Peristeri due to the poor condition of the pitch at Zosimades, Giannikis will not have Siontis and Kargas at his disposal.