League

Mikrá Sánta Stadium
Spectators: 6788 (Terracing: 5000, Seating: 1788, VIP seats: 0) After a rather tough play, Chelsea's Koulis Prichtis got a free kick in the 2nd minute. After 4 played minutes, Mikrá Sánta's Makis Zintanopoulos shot from a long distance, and at first it looked like the ball was going into the goal, but the goalkeeper Alkinoos Fanaras came through and got his fingers on the ball before it flew over the goal line. He then quickly gripped the ball tighter before the forwards in Mikrá Sánta reached it. Sakis Margaritas received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 12th minute. Dionysis Naskos tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Manos Malezas could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 14th minute of the match, but Alkinoos Fanaras made a huge save. An unexpectedly hard shot by Panos Karypidis in the 16th minute of play forced Mikrá Sánta's goalkeeper Dionysis Naskos to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. 20 minutes into the game, Chelsea's Sakis Margaritas nearly tore a hole in the net with a booming shot. Dionysis Naskos made a valiant effort, but he could not reach the ball in time, 0-1. 26 minutes into the match, Mikrá Sánta's goal looked a bit too open when Panos Karypidis came free, but Dionysis Naskos reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Manos Malezas received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 31st minute. Alkinoos Fanaras tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Stergios Veggos in the 34th managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Alkinoos Fanaras saved Chelsea from getting behind. Makis Zintanopoulos's shot from long distance in the 35th minute was not bad at all, but Chelsea's Alkinoos Fanaras knew what was happening and pushed the ball into his arms just before it hit the right post. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Dimitris Karkabasis in the 39th managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Dionysis Naskos saved Mikrá Sánta from getting behind. 40 minutes into the match, Mikrá Sánta's goal looked a bit too open when Panos Karypidis came free, but Dionysis Naskos reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. In the 43rd minute, Mikrá Sánta's Petros Tsagogeorgas seemed to kick out at an opponent. The referee saw this and, surprisingly, showed Petros Tsagogeorgas the red card, dismissing him from the pitch. The coaching staff of Mikrá Sánta protested bitterly, but the referee would have none of it, and Petros Tsagogeorgas had no choice but to slowly walk off the pitch. The referee blew the whistle for a penalty in the 42nd minute of the game. One of Mikrá Sánta:s players had nearly got his shirt torn off by an opponent while getting free in front of Chelsea:s goal. After the first half Chelsea were leading 0-2. They had played with great self confidence throughout the first half and fully deserved their lead.

In the 52nd minute Panos Karypidis shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Dionysis Naskos saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. 53 minutes into the match, Mikrá Sánta's goal looked a bit too open when Sakis Margaritas came free, but Dionysis Naskos reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. When Stergios Veggos came up free with the goalie in the 54th minute, the Mikrá Sánta fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Stergios Veggos couldn't finish the play. If Stergios Veggos had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 59th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Alkinoos Fanaras made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Stergios Veggos in the 62nd minute of play. 66 minutes into the match, Mikrá Sánta's goalkeeper Dionysis Naskos had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Dimitris Karkabasis. Christoforos Grigoratos might have been able to make a better finish in the 70th minute when he tried to place a hard shot over Alkinoos Fanaras. Instead the ball went over the crossbar and out. Christoforos Grigoratos ran back to his position shaking his head. Alkinoos Fanaras showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Stergios Veggos in the 71st minute of the match. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Stergios Veggos in the 75th managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Alkinoos Fanaras saved Chelsea from getting behind. Dionysis Naskos took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Panos Karypidis, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Stergios Veggos fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 84th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Alkinoos Fanaras having to interfere. Dionysis Naskos showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Panos Karypidis, who was totally free with the ball in the 87th minute. After having played for 88 minutes, Stergios Veggos managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Mikrá Sánta's supporters crossed their fingers, but Stergios Veggos was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. Christoforos Grigoratos struck a weak shot in the 90th minute. Alkinoos Fanaras didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Mikrá Sánta. The audience was convinced that Stergios Veggos's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Alkinoos Fanaras was relentless in the 91st minute of the game. After 94 played minutes Chelsea got a freekick which was hit by Panos Karypidis. Alkinoos Fanaras showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Stergios Veggos in the 96th minute of the match. The Chelsea supporters could be heard counting down the last seconds of the match. They errupted in celebration when the whistle blew, knowing Chelsea would go home with victory in their luggage after a match that easily could have ended differently.