Panathinaikos successfully completed their first European assignment of the season. The Greens secured qualification for the third qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League and continue their journey towards the competition’s League Phase. Paksi took the lead twice, but goals from Jagusic and Rastoder earned Panathinaikos a 2-2 draw, sending the Shamrock into the next round, where they will face Bulgaria’s CSKA Sofia 1948.
Paksi looked to catch Panathinaikos off guard early on and created the first dangerous opportunity in the 10th minute, when Papp headed over the crossbar. The Hungarian side threatened again in the 20th minute through a powerful effort from Péte, but De Vrij intervened decisively to avert the danger.
The Greens responded in the 23rd minute as Andino drove forward before unleashing a fierce shot that flashed narrowly wide. The Argentine came close again four minutes later with an effort from the edge of the penalty area, but Paksi’s goalkeeper produced an excellent save to turn the ball behind for a corner.
Paksi found the breakthrough in the 35th minute through a powerful strike by Péte from inside the box. The goal, however, was preceded by an attacking foul on Tsapras that went unpunished, while the absence of VAR at this stage of the competition meant there was no opportunity for the officials to review the incident and correct the decision.
Panathinaikos threatened with a long-range effort from Kyriakopoulos in the 39th minute, before finding the equalizer five minutes later. In the 44th minute, Jagusic received the ball inside the area and unleashed a thunderous finish past the Paksi goalkeeper to score his first official goal in a Panathinaikos shirt.
The second half began with the Greens coming within inches of taking the lead when De Vrij’s close-range effort was cleared off the line by the Paksi defense, keeping the score level at 1-1. Instead of Panathinaikos going ahead, however, the visitors regained the lead. Against the run of play and after benefiting from a series of fortunate deflections, the Hungarian side scored through Gyorfi in the 57th minute, although the move had been preceded by an unnoticed handball.
Despite the setback, the Greens responded impressively. Jacob Neestrup’s tactical changes, both in personnel and formation, gave the team fresh momentum for a late push. After Rastoder missed two good opportunities, the Panathinaikos striker finally found the decisive goal. In the 85th minute, Taborda delivered an inviting cross, De Vrij nodded the ball across goal, and Rastoder applied a composed finish to score the goal that sealed qualification.
Panathinaikos’ next European fixture is scheduled for Wednesday, 5th of August, at the Olympic Stadium, with kick-off at 9:30 p.m.
Panathinaikos: Peña, Tsapras, Kyriakopoulos, De Vrij, Touba (61′ Van Drongelen), Camara, Cerin (75′ Chirivella), Jagusic (65′ Rastoder), Zaroury (61′ Pellistri), Andino (75′ Taborda), Tetteh.
Paksi: Kovácsik, Vas, Szabó, Szeke, Győrfi (84′ Balogh), Windecker, Papp, Lapu (46′ Lenzsér), Horváth (72′ Gyurkits), Péte (72′ Tóth), Szalai (72′ Böde).
