As the players of AEK Athens and Panathinaikos lined up ahead of their January meeting, a thick layer of smoke hung above the pitch, delaying the kick-off by ten minutes. Even after some of the smog had cleared, flares continued to illuminate the OPAP Arena throughout the match as the home supporters sought to create as fierce an atmosphere as possible. Pyrotechnics are a common sight in Greek football, but this game had more than most; the latest meeting of Athens’ biggest clubs was more than just a local derby – it was a top-of-the-table clash.
The last time that the two sides finished in Greece’s top two was in 1995-96. Usually, they are chasing Olympiakos, whose domination of the Greek Super League is hard to overstate. The Piraeus-based club have always been a heavyweight, winning 32 titles since the Alpha Ethniki began back in1959. But 22 of those have come in the last 26 seasons; in each of the last three
