Aiming for Acropolis

The club was formed off the back of Turkish oppression by Greek refugees in Constantinople and if you are to take a cold, hard look at where they find themselves with the new season approaching, it becomes evidently clear that they are in danger of returning to the wrong side of bourgeois whip. The giants of the division have moved quickly to strengthen their already strong position, adding proven players to proven ranks, leaving some of the fans wondering if perhaps Hades has taken the helm atop Mount Olympus.

“In this city, the people have always looked to the skies, finding reasons to be fearful of and to worship those entities, who seem so powerful and out of reach, that it seems silly to have any hope of matching them.”

Not anymore, if new manager Johnny McKenna succeeds in his ambitious plans for the club.

“I look across the division and of course, I see the quality available to other managers. But I also see opportunity. We have a chance to see that our Aegean club’s name is spoken in tandem with these aging line-ups”.

This much is certainly true. While their newly assembled squad may not have the name recognition and rank of some of their counterparts yet, they definitely have youth on their side. At the time of writing, only four players over the age of 30 have been signed and many of the incomings come not only with potential, but also with a point to prove. Sanmartin Joselu arrived in England with a weight of expectation on his shoulders that the great Hercules could not carry and failed to deliver. Valentin Eysseric was just too Nice according to the French, left for Florence and did not so much as cause a ripple in the Arno river. Roman Zobnin marches on Athens to show the world that Russian footballers still have a part to play on the global stage. Andrej Balic wants to reignite the switch that saw him become the shining light of Croatian football before being extinguished in Udine. Geoff Cameron is American and wants to show that this can also be a good thing.

“We have signed 14 players with a few more possible arrivals, each and every one of them are chomping at the bit. They are caged lions starved of success. They are hungry and they smell a kill. My job is simple. Assign shirt numbers, drawback the latch and release them upon their prey.”

McKenna is ready, so too are the players. The rest is in the hands of the Gods.