The captain of the Bulgarian national football team Kiril Despodov has become the big surprise for PAOK head coach Alessio Lishi before Sunday's city derby against Iraklis. The Bulgarian winger missed the last two training sessions of the team from Thessaloniki due to health problems.
Despodov, who recently completed his long recovery after surgery on his right toe, was this time struck down by the flu and remained out of action.
Despodov's absence increases personnel headaches for Italian coach Alessio Lishi, who already has a very limited choice of players due to a series of long-term injuries in the squad.
Despite the missed training sessions, the door for the Bulgarian to participate in the derby at the “Tumba“ stadium (on Sunday at 9:00 p.m.) is not yet completely closed. PAOK's medical staff is subjecting Despodov to intensive drug therapy in the hope that he will participate in the last Saturday session at 5:30 p.m., when the final decision will be made on whether he will enter the group.
The sessions at the club's base in Nea Messemvria were entirely focused on tactical preparation and offensive automation. After the traditional warm-up and rondo, the players worked on possession and quick movement of the ball, and the training ended with a mini-tournament between three teams in a closed space.
The Greek media, including the portal agones.gr, define the upcoming clash as extremely important for Alessio Lishi and his graduates. PAOK enters the derby under pressure after the shocking 1:3 home loss to Kalamata last week.
PAOK currently occupies 4th place in the Greek Super League standings with an asset of 12 points – three behind the leader Panathinaikos. The Iraklis team, which has returned to the elite, is in 7th position with 9 points.