AEK is heading to Apeldoorn for its main preseason training camp, stronger and more prepared than it has been in many years. Following the coordinated efforts of Javier Ribalta and the club’s management, “AEK” will have two more players joining them from the very first days of training in the Netherlands: Kaan Kairinen and Christos Alexiou.

The 27-year-old Finnish midfielder is joining on a transfer from Sparta Prague. He will travel directly to the Netherlands, meaning he will not stop in Athens first. His medical exams are expected to be completed today, and he will be available to Marco Nikolić starting Tuesday. As for the 21-year-old Greek center back, he underwent medical exams yesterday, and today the final details of his loan from Inter will be finalized, and he will be with the team from day one in Apeldoorn.

Once these two deals are formally finalized, there will essentially be one more move left: the signing of a ready-to-play center back to join Mukundi, Relvas, Alexiou, and the… backup Vinda (Georgiev is primarily being considered for right back), in order to complete AEK’s roster puzzle for the new season.

Beyond that, the champions will be waiting in about two weeks (presumably shortly after July 20) for Orbelin Pineda to join the team. The “Union” captain has wrapped up his duties with Mexico, which was eliminated in the World Cup Round of 16 by England. He will take a few days of well-deserved time off, since he didn’t get any rest after winning the league title, and will then report to Marco Nikolić, traveling directly to Athens. With the return of the 30-year-old midfielder, there will also be new discussions regarding the extension of his contract.

*photo source: AP