On his irritation after the PAS Giannina match:

«I am a bit disappointed, because some things I said were misconstrued. I said that different approaches and plans are acceptable in each game, but I cannot accept the way PAS Giannina players engaged in blatant time wasting since the first half and practically refrained from playing football –that was the reason of my irritation.

Whenever the ball was out of play, two players would lie on the pitch –that’s not football. That is why I was vexed. As a coach, I have often come up with defensive strategies. There are even teams who won World Cups with defensive tactics. I want to apologize to the coach of PAS Giannina if what I said was misconstrued or taken out of context«.

Whether the encounter against AEK Athens is special:

«It’s important to be ready on Sunday. We have reached a point where only we only care about the three points. We will face a good team, a quality team who have one of the best coaches in Greece in my opinion«.

Whether he expects pressure in the OAKA derby:

«It’s an encounter between two very good sides. We know exactly what we have to do in order to clinch three points. It’s not a matter of mental approach. We have a ten-point lead, adding all points we got on the pitch. We have balance, we know how to win a game and the only pressure we feel is getting these three points«.

On PAOK’s newest signings:

«Every player is important in our squad. Our administration made some signings in January’s transfer window in order to boost the team. This is not Playstation – we can’t make every signing we want. We have a winning team since last season. It depends on our level of readiness. My staff and I evaluate everything, we know when a player is ready to join the squad and find the ideal moment for their integration«.

Regarding his players’ condition:

«We have no problem in the squad. All players are healthy«.

Regarding Ivan Savvidis, who will escort PAOK squad to the Olympic Stadium of Athens:

«It’s a difficult match between two great teams. The fact that our President will be with us gives us strength, but also demonstrates the unity of our group«.