GSL Preview: Revitalized PAOK set for fresh start

The Greek Super League (GSL) is only a day away; and here at the Greeksoccer.com 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.

This past summer has been a revolution for PAOK, after the club has acquired several quality players to add to an improving side. A club regarded as one of the biggest – behind the Big 3 of Olympiacos, Panathinaikos, and AEK , of course – has truly struggled in recent years. Inconsistency has plagued Toumba, and PAOK have finished out of European contention for quite some time. Led by club president and former Greece- international, Theodoros Zagorakis, the club has transformed over the last few months.

A long list of players have come from Portugal, where the club’s manager, Fernando Santos, has a strong bond. Among the new arrivals, Kostas Chalkias is the most controversial as the Greece-international makes the move from rivals Aris FC. Other acquisitions include: Pablo Contreras from SC Braga; Vierinha from Sporting Lisbon; Zlatan Muslimovic from Atalanta; and Pablo Garcia from Real Murcia. Out of all the club’s summer additions, Pablo Garcia’s was the most anticipated arrival as a large crowd of PAOK supporters gathered to greet the former Real Madrid player.

Lazaros Christodoulopoulos and Daniel Fernandes headline a long list of departures from Toumba, as the former makes the move to Panathinaikos, while the latter seeks a new challenge with the Bundesliga’s Vfl Bochum. Former Greece-international, Georgios Georgiadis has hung up his boots after several years of service in the Greek top flight.

PAOK’s new look team will be under great pressure to have a strong start and ultimately qualify for European competition. After several mid-table finishes, the call for Europe from its supporters must be answered by a talented PAOK.