Panathinaikos is looking to get back on track with domestic wins and maintain its top spot. The “Greens,” a week after their defeat in the “eternal” derby against Olympiacos, are looking to bounce back in the Stoiximan Super League as well, facing Asteras Tripolis today at 5:30 p.m. in Matchday 7.
Jacob Nistrup’s team remains at the top of the standings with 15 points, but the loss in Faliro served as a wake-up call—it showed that their 5-0 record didn’t make them “invincible”. The “clover” showed an initial response, as the team secured a “narrow” 2-1 victory over Borac in the Conference League’s League Phase opener, a performance that was accompanied by a strong showing for most of the match.
As for the lineup, the Danish coach announced a squad consisting of 24 players, none of whom include the suspended Étienne Kamara, nor Viktor Christiansen. Today’s match, among other things, holds special significance for Panathinaikos, which will honor the memory of Giorgos Vardinoyannis, who passed away at the age of 90. In addition, the “Green” club is set to honor two Asteras players who more than did justice to the shamrock jersey— namely Dimitris Kourbelis and Giannis Kotsiras, who returned to the team where they cut their soccer teeth.
The roster: Penia, Chaves, Kotsaris, Kalabria, Tsapras, Kyriakopoulos, Salah-Eddin, De Vrij, Van Drongelen, Palmer-Brown, Katris, Kangwa, Louza, Tsiriveya, Kontouris, Taborda, Ounai, Jagusic, Pelistri, Adino, Levi Garcia, Tetei, Desers, Rastonder.
Squad list vs Asteras AKTOR #Panathinaikos #PAOFC #slgr #PAOAST https://t.co/mRBOJCCbJj
— Panathinaikos F.C. (@paofc_) October 17, 2026
On the other side, Asteras is a team that didn’t start the season well; it has had its ups and downs, but is slowly finding its footing. The Arkadians are in 11th place in the standings, and that’s because just last week (in Matchday 6), they celebrated their first “three points” with a 2-1 victory over Atromitos in Tripoli. Asteras Tripoli also has two draws and three losses, and with five points, has not lived up to the expectations many had for the team.
The team from Tripoli heads to the OAKA in high spirits, with head coach Giorgos Antonopoulos set to have Dimitris Kourbelis available, while Panagiotis Deligiannidis has also declared himself ready, who has been included in the roster for the first time this season following his fibula injury, which kept him out of preseason training. In contrast, the injured Jordan Silva and Adrián Riera remain out, while Bruno Peres, who is suffering from discomfort, has been added to the injury report.
Asteras AKTOR’s roster: Papadopoulos, Kriaras, Hatzimmanuel, Chrysopoulos, Bartolo, Bouzoukis, Makenda, Eder, Ketou, Chico, Brorsson, Tereziou, Orothko, Kaltsas, Kourbelis, Kotsiras, Mendez, Ricardinho, Papakanellos, Deligiannidis, Zogou, Laskaris, Kimbioka.
The most likely starting lineups:
Panathinaikos (Jacob Nystrup): Peña – Calabria, De Vrij, Van Drongelen, Salah-Eddin-Kontouris, Kangwa, Ounai – Levi, Adino, Desers
Asteras AKTOR (Giorgos Antonopoulos): Papadopoulos – Kotsiras, Brorson, Laskaris, Orosko – Kourbelis, Eder, Bartolo – Ketou, Papakanellos, Makenda
Referee: Angelos Evangelou
; Assistant Referees: Karagizopoulos and Papadopoulou
; Fourth Official: Zampalas
; VAR: Koubarakis/Kokkinos
*photo source: KYPE
