Greece beats Malta in unimpressive display
The men’s national soccer team ended the season with a 2-0 friendly win over Malta on Tuesday after a rather mediocre performance in Austria.
Caretaking coach Nikos Papadopoulos made several changes in an effort to hand some playing time to all players in his squad ahead of September’s first Nations League game.
In the first 20 minutes Greece was composed and effective, earning a penalty that captain Tasos Bakasetas converted and then creating a beautiful team effort that Christos Tzolis sealed with the thunderbolt that found the back of the Maltese net.
Yet after that, the Greeks appeared to be thinking about their holidays, creating few chances and allowing Malta to test the goal of debutant Kostantis Tzolakis.
All in all it was the opposite to the friendly three days earlier in Germany, when Greece did not get a result but showed a very positive picture.
The Greek soccer federation (EPO) is about to have a new president in Makis Gagatsis, who will undertake to appoint the new Greece manager. Among the favorites are former Panathinaikos coach Ivan Jovanovic and ex-Greece manager Fernando Santos, according to reports.
