The summer experiment failed. The club administration’s decision to appoint Xavi Roca in the post-Donis era did not bring the desired results. The Spaniard put his trust in compatriot Dani Pogiatos in the head coach role, and the duo were in charge of the transfer moves, but nothing seemed to work well on the pitch.

After a poor start, Panathinaikos decided to change personnel. The experienced Laszlo Boloni took over as coach, while Pierre Dreossi became the Greens’ new technical director.

By the end of November the changes seemed to have worked. The Greens improved on the pitch, found some stability, and they began to pick up results and steadily climb up the table.

After the defeat at the Toumba in the last game of December, Panathinaikos then went unbeaten for nine games, recording seven wins and two draws, but then after a fine derby win over Olympiacos came the … collapse.

Two defeats by PAS Giannina in the Greek Cup saw them exit at the quarter-final stage, and there were three defeats and a draw in the championship which saw them slip down to sixth place. Apart from that, the teams style of play and performance dipped considerably.

Panathinaikos to date have collected 42 points from 25 games, the same as Asteras Tripolis, and they will be in the Play Offs, but they will have to improve significantly if they are to fight for a place in Europe.

The three additions in the January transfer of Niasse, Sankhare and N’Gbakoto have strengthened the squad. The club’s top scorer is Carlitos with six goals, followed by Macheda with four, while in terms of creativity, Chatzigiovanis has three assists, while Aitor has two.

For the game against PAOK, Boloni will be without Bech, Sankhare, Velez, Xavier, Kourbelis, Alexandropoulos and Kampetsis.