Historic European win for Copenhagen
PANATHINAIKOS: 0 FC COPENHAGEN: 2 (N’Doye 28, Vingaard 37)
FC Copenhagen: Wiland, Wendt, Antonsson, Zanka, Pospech, Vingaard, Kvist, Claudemir (Delaney 79), Bolaños (Nørregaard 58), Grønkjaer, N’Doye (Santin 76).
Booked: Claudemir, Giorgos Karagounis (Panathinaikos FC)
Sent Off: Gilberto Silva (Panathinaikos FC)
FC Copenhagen travelled to Athens on the back of four straight victories, as they looked to establish themselves as top dogs in Group D of the UEFA Champions League. Coach Ståle Solbakken named an unchanged starting line up from his side’s defeat of FC Midtjylland at the weekend.
by Joe Short
Within the opening 30 seconds FCK came under fire: Panathinaikos attacking immediately from kick off. Djibril Cissé’s volleyed effort from 20 yards was well tipped over the bar from Johan Wiland, while the resulting corner was comfortably defended.
However, after this initial scare, Copenhagen settled down into a rhythm and began to push their opponents back, deep into their own half. Indeed, the gap between defence and midfield was exploited well by Christian Bolaños, who picked up a ball in space to run at the Greek defence. His pass wide to Zdenek Pospech was too heavy however, and an attack that almost mirrored the opening goal of last Saturday’s FC Midtjylland game unfortunately came to no avail.
While Copenhagen controlled possession for most parts, Panathinaikos were the next to record an effort on goal after 16 minutes. Sotiris Nilis fired a shot straight at Wiland, while at the other end Martin Vingaard could only slice high over the bar under pressure.
Goal out of the blue
What followed was a relatively dull period of possession football, with neither side creating much in their opponents’ thirds. However, quick thinking from Jesper Grønkjaer down the right wing in the 28th minute played Dame N’Doye through. Almost 25 yards out, the Senegalese front man acted quickly to the presence of the out-rushing goalkeeper, firing past Alexandros Tzorvas into the unguarded net to score against his former club.
While the Lions faithful were still celebrating their lead, the away side could have made it two. This time, Grønkjaer manoeuvred his way free inside the penalty area and – rather than shoot at goal – pulled a pass back to N’Doye. However, the ball fell behind the striker and was cleared before a follow-up opportunity could be salvaged.
It seemed only a matter of time before FCK got their second goal, and after a great passing move that spanned half the team yet yielded a weak effort from Grønkjaer, it was clear which way the direction of the game was going. Indeed, in the 37th minute, Vingaard made it 2-0 with a drilled free kick from 30 yards out. The strike flew past the wall, wrong-footing Tzorvas in its path to the net.
Striving to extend the lead
Not content with a two-goal cushion, FCK pushed for the third five minutes before half time. Pospech played a challenging ball down the right-hand touchline for Bolaños, who – having reached the by-line – cut back inside to lay off to Vingaard. The midfielder’s shot was deflected wide for a corner however, as Solbakken showed his nervous tension at not seeing the net bulge.
At the other end, Cissé fired narrowly over the Copenhagen crossbar, but his side left the field to a barrage of boos from the Athens crowd.
Gilberto sees red
And the evening didn’t get much better for Panathinaikos in the second half, as Gilberto Silva received his marching orders on 48 minutes. As FCK looked to break, the Brazilian defensive midfielder stuck out an arm to prevent the attack, which led to his second yellow card and an early shower.
From this point on Copenhagen dominated possession and territory, often looking to add a third but with little success as the need to pressurise was the home side’s. Bolaños came off for Hjalte Nørregaard, as Solbakken looked to tighten his midfield for the closing stages of the game.
On the hour mark, N’Doye saw a rare glimpse on goal, but his narrow-angled effort dribbled harmlessly across Tzorvas’s posts; while Nørregaard got his first taste of goalmouth action nine minutes later, when a fierce, low cross from Oscar Wendt was met by the midfielder. His shot was saved by the crossbar however. Seconds later, William Kvist found himself all alone in the box, but his pass went astray and was easily cleared.
Professional defensive performance
Panathinaikos, in return, had a chance from Cissé, whose flicked effort rose just over the crossbar to Wiland’s undoubted relief, while a dangerous looking free kick hit the three-man FCK wall rather than threaten the goal. On 77 minutes Kvist had to be on his toes when a scramble in the FCK penalty area from a corner resulted in a lose ball in front of goal, but the Denmark international was quick to clear.
In the final ten minutes Copenhagen effectively shut the game down, dominating any lose balls in midfield and maintaining possession. Even when the away side gave the ball away – such as Wendt in the 85th minute – there was always someone at hand (Mikael Zanka this time) to sweep up the mistake. Panathinaikos were visibly struggling to penetrate anything from midfield to attack, yet in the 91st minute Cissé had one final effort, which Wiland collected with ease.
At the final whistle Solbakken was his more subdued self, compared with the end of FCK’s win over Rubin Kazan. Copenhagen can now proudly boast of sitting top of Group D after the second round of matches, with six points and a +3 goal difference. They next face FC Barcelona at the Nou Camp on the 20th October, in the knowledge that a victory will go a long way to qualification to the knockout stages of the competition.
