“The fact that Olympiacos reached the final…”

Olympiacos Piraeus could achieve the biggest success for a Greek club in European club football in the UEFA Conference League final on Wednesday (from 9:00pm on the live stream).

So far, no Greek team has been able to win the European Cup competition. Countries with the largest number of European Cup holders >>>

This provides Olympiacos with a great opportunity to make history with a final victory over Fiorentina – and of all places at home!

The OPAP Arena in Nea Philadelphia, a suburb of Athens, which only opened in 2022, is the venue for the conference league final. The stadium was home to AEK Athens for a year and a half.

Stankovic: “This hurts us a lot”

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The past has proven many times that things can get heated between the top Greek clubs. Even if the final is held at the opponent's stadium, Olympiacos still has to make sure it has the support of most parts of the country.

At least Sekan Stanković thinks so. The goalkeeper knows the final pitch well, which he can call 'home' as an AEK Athens professional. “The fact that Olympiacos reached the final – and in our stadium – cannot be influenced,” Stankovic explains. No, first.

For AEK Athens, winners of the Greek Double the previous season, the European Cup season ended in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League, and they narrowly missed out on a move to the Conference League. “We had the opportunity to move up to the conference on the final day of the game, which hurt us a lot.”

An Olympiacos title will strengthen the entire league

It was also a painful 2-0 defeat to Olympiacos in the penultimate round of the Greek Super League qualifiers, in which AEK Athens lost the championship.

painful? Yes. However, Stankovic holds no grudges and knows who he will be rooting for: “A win against Olympiacos is good for Greek football.”

An Olympiacos win would also help AEK Athens indirectly. “This would improve the whole league,” the 31-year-old said. “Greece is still fighting for 15th place in the five-year ranking.”

Not to mention the emotional value that Greece's first European Cup win will have for the country. “Greeks are known for their passion. You can imagine what would happen there.”

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