Panathinaikos suffered a 1-0 defeat from Olympiacos at Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium and will not continue in the Greek Cup. Despite having the opportunity to secure qualification from the home ground of their eternal rivals for the second consecutive year, the Greens were unsuccessful and, as a result, will not be able to defend their title.
The first half was very balanced, with a fast pace but few chances. Both teams struggled to become threatening, with two notable exceptions. Olympiacos had the first good moment in the 8th minute with a shot from Chiquinho inside the area that went just wide of Lodygin’s right post.
On their part, Panathinaikos had their biggest chance in the 30th minute when Ounahi attempted to target the empty net from 30 meters out with Paschalakis out of position. However, the Moroccan put too much power into the shot, and the ball went high over the bar. Notably, before the end of the half (41′), Retsos pushed Pellistri with both hands inside the area, but neither the referee nor the VAR awarded a penalty.
The second half began with the Greens creating a significant opportunity. After a diagonal pass from Tete, Pellistri found himself alone against Paschalakis, whom he evaded, but with the help of Rodinei, Olympiacos’ goalkeeper managed to block the ball.
In the 53rd minute, Lodygin was alert, making a crucial save on a long-range shot from Horta, as he did again in the 72nd minute on a dangerous free-kick by Rodinei, which was slightly deflected by Biancone, altering its trajectory. In the 76th minute, the hosts threatened through Martins, but Ingason’s intervention was decisive.
In the 88th minute, the referee awarded a penalty for a challenge between Vagiannidis and Biancone. Although the VAR called for an on-field review, the initial decision stood. However, El Kaabi, who took the penalty in the 92nd minute, sent the ball to the right post.
In the very next phase (93′), Panathinaikos had a huge chance to leave Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium with a victory and qualification. Djuricic evaded several Olympiacos players, shot from close range and a tight angle, but the ball went just wide. The game was ultimately decided in the 94th minute when Mouzakitis scored the winning goal for his team with a shot from outside the area. This was the first defeat for the Greens after 15 domestic matches under Rui Vitória.
Olympiacos: Paschalakis, Rodinei, Ortega, Retsos (46′ Biancone), Carmo, Hezze, Mouzakitis, Chiquinho (72′ Velde), Horta (54′ Kostoulas), Martins, El Kaabi.
Panathinaikos: Lodygin, Vagiannidis, Mladenovic, Ingason, Palmer-Brown, Cerin, Maksimovic (65′ Siopis),Ounahi (74′ Bakasetas), Pellistri (64′ Djuricic), Tete (85′ Mancini), Ioannidis (74′ Swiderski).
