GSL Preview: Skoda Xanthi gearing to go

The Greek Super League (GSL) is only a day away; and here at the Greece Blog we’re counting down the days to kickoff of the 2008/2009 season with a preview for each of the sixteen clubs comprising Greece’s top level of football.

A regular dark horse in the Greek Super League, Skoda Xanthi is always a tough side to beat, especially at home. The club was even tougher last year, as Canadian international, Tomasz Radzinski lit up the Greek League to lead his side in scoring with fourteen goals. However, the Canadian is no longer with the club as Xanthi have sold the club’s biggest asset to Belgian outfit Lierse.

The summer months have seen Xanthi reinforce a very talented attack. Despite Radzinski’s departure, Xanthi looks dangerous in attack as new signings Charilaos Pappas and Victor Agali will team up in attack, while the midfielder pair of Diego Quintana and Francisco Zuela adds depth in the midfield. In goal, the club has a new back-stopper in Radosław Janukiewicz. The Polish keeper comes to Xanthi from Zaglebie Lubin, where he was currently on loan from Ekstraklasa club Slask Wraclaw. Other than Radzinski, a notable departure is Antonis Rikka, who left Xanthi for capital club, AEK Athens.

In the past, Skoda Xanthi has always given clubs a scare at home, but their weak away record has hurt the club’s chances to compete for the few European spots. Skoda Xanthi will have to stay consistent if they are to end the stranglehold Greece’s finest have on the European spots.