The historic night that the entire AEK community had been waiting for—when “Enosis” would learn its Champions League opponents—has finally arrived. Marko Nikolić’s team faces Real Madrid (7:45 p.m.) in the electric atmosphere of Nea Filadelfia, where there won’t be a single empty seat—the game sold out within minutes of tickets going on sale.
The “Double-Headed Eagle” isn’t just hosting a top-tier team, but—for many—the greatest club on the planet, which tops the list of most titles in the competition with 15 trophies. However, in the past, Real Madrid has not intimidated AEK, which should remember its two matches from the 2002–03 season, when it remained undefeated against the “Queen” with a 2-2 draw in Madrid and the historic 3-3 tie in Nea Filadelfia.
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Champions league: Close matches in istanbul and portugal
The “Double-Headed Eagle” players should enjoy this match, but also take the field at the “Allwyn Arena” with confidence in their ability to pull off a major upset. They must not… show undue deference to the Spanish stars, but instead faithfully follow Marko Nikolić’s game plan. The Serbian coach emphasized, among other things, during the press conference both the quality of the opponent and the magic of AEK’s home court, which can give his players a boost:
“We have a very big game ahead of us. Ever since the draw, we’ve all been thinking about this matchup. We’re facing perhaps the greatest team in the world—a team full of stars and led by an amazing coach. It’s our 100th match at our new stadium, and it’s a huge challenge for us to be competitive. We won’t go in naively; we’ll fight hard and be very tough. This stadium has a certain magic, and we need to create that magic through our play and set the stands on fire.
However, we must not forget our domestic competitions, because it was through the league that we made it here, and it is through the league that we’ll be able to return here next year. We have a team that’s evolving; we’re constantly improving, step by step. We qualified for the Conference League, won the league title, and reached the Conference League quarterfinals. Even during a difficult period, full of challenges, we’ll use this time to show our best side—something we’ll do against Real Madrid as well.”
AEK, coming off its first league loss in a year—a 2-0 defeat to Panathinaikos at OAKA—will take the field with just one concern, as João Mário is sidelined. Lazaros Rota is back in Nikolić’s squad, as is Thomas Strakosha, who will, however, start on the bench. It’s unlikely there will be any changes to the starting lineup compared to the players who started against “the Shamrock,” with the exception of Aboubakar Koïta, who is the favorite to start in place of Zubkov. Vitalis and Ariaga are vying for a starting spot alongside Marin, as is Zini at the top of the attack.
In the standings, the “Yellow-and-Blacks” have three points and are in 27th place, tied with six other teams. Admittedly, this isn’t one of the matches they’ve “targeted” for a point or points, but that doesn’t mean they won’t fight for the best possible result: after all, they are undefeated this season at Nea Filadelfia with a 7-0 record across all competitions, and this will be the “Double-Headed Eagle’s” 100th game at the “Allwyn Arena.”
On the other side, Real Madrid is in its best form of the season. They have six consecutive wins across all competitions and are undefeated in the Champions League with a 3-0 record in the group stage against Inter (home, 2-1), Roma (away, 3-4), and Leipzig (home, 4-1).
José Mourinho spoke highly of AEK at the press conference, saying, among other things: “We have to be very serious. We’re far from qualifying directly. We need points. AEK is very strong at home; we’ll play with seriousness. The fact that Real Madrid has won a European match in Athens means a lot. We have to give it our all and be very serious because we need points.
AEK is the champion team in its country. Athens and Greece are tough for us. It’s been many years since I’ve played with my team in Greece, and the atmosphere here is tough. AEK has had tough matches in the Champions League; they’ve been drawn against difficult opponents. Teams playing at home always fight for points. They’re highly motivated, especially against Real Madrid. We have to play at our absolute best.”
The “Special One” left Arda Güler and Aurélien Tchouaméni in Madrid, while Rodrigo, Benjamin Mendy, and Raúl Asensio are also unavailable. On the other hand, he will have both Federico Valverde and Vinícius at his disposal.
Here is Real Madrid’s full roster: Courtois, Lunin, Mestre, Militão, Hausen, Trent, Konaté, Kukureya, Álvaro Carreras, Rüdiger, Dumfries, Bellingham, Camavinga, Valverde, Bernardo Silva, Thiago, Sergio Martínez, Vinícius Júnior, Edric, Mbappé, Carlos Espí, Brahim, Yann Diomandé.
Possible starting lineups:
AEK (Marko Nikolić): Brignoli, Rota, Mukundi, Relvas, Pilios, Mayer, Marin, Vitalis (Ariaga), Koita (Gacinović), Jović, Varga (Zini)
Real Madrid (José Mourinho): Courtois, Valverde, Hausen, Rüdiger, Cucurella, Camavinga, Bernardo Silva, Diomandé, Bellingham, Vinícius, Mbappé
The officiating team:
- Referee: Maurizio Mariani (Italy)
- First Assistant Referee: Daniele Bidoni (Italy)
- Second Assistant Referee: Stefano Alasio (Italy)
- Fourth Official: Simone Sosa (Italy)
- VAR: Alessandro Di Paolo (Italy)
- AVAR: Valerio Marini (Italy)
*photo source: KYPE
