On the difficult week for PAOK that has preceded the game:

«I wouldn’t describe the week as difficult. I prefer to have positive energy and try to pass it on to those around me, so I will say it was a good week, because we will get a positive result in this game with Aris.»

On his feelings after the previous two league games, as well as the match in Bratislava:

«The game with Atromitos was a bad one for us. We were not the team who should have left the pitch with nothing to show for our efforts. Against Slovan, we wanted to get the victory, but we did not manage to score. Looking at the positives from that match though, we did not concede a goal and it had been a while since the last time we did that.»

On the last two games in which the team did not score and how he sees it:

«It’s the same as when we concede a goal and we all have a responsibility, as well as the strikers. Everyone has to contribute in order to score a goal, and it makes sense that when you are in this position and you are the striker you have to put the ball in the net, that you have a greater responsibility. Everything we do, whether positive or negative, has to do with the overall operation of the team.»

On the ups and downs that PAOK has experienced, and if it is a matter of character, or making improvements through training:

«It’s a matter that we have to correct with our daily work. There is no excuse. It is a fact that as the program has come so far with the games, we do not manage to rest before the next game, but this should not be an excuse. We have to do what we need from our daily work to become better.»

On what makes him optimistic about the rest of the season:

«What makes me optimistic and gives me faith is that everything is part of a process. Keeping in mind that we have a very good and successful coach, whom we all respect, we know that this process will not be easy. It may be tough. In some games we may not score. In some games we may lose, but if we follow the right steps, at some point it will ‘click’ and we will be where we want to be.»

On today’s game and what the key points will be:

«These local derbies, in their complexity, are at the same time very simple. They have a long history in the past, so it does not matter if you are first or last in the standings, or how you played in the previous match. We know how important it is for the fans and what we have to do, and we have to give everything to get the victory.»