Panathinaikos have signed Moroccan international left-back Anas Salah Eddine from Roma, the latest addition in a summer transfer window that is on course to total exactly twelve new arrivals for the Greek club, according to a report by Evangelos Michos for Sportdog.gr.
Roma, Salah Eddine's former club, play in Italy's Serie A and are one of the most prominent teams in the Italian capital.
Salah Eddine, who represented Morocco at the World Cup, becomes the most recent of Panathinaikos's signings this summer, though the report said he will not be the last, with further transfer business still to come. Morocco reached the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the furthest any African nation has advanced in the tournament's history.
Panathinaikos, founded in 1908 and based in Athens, are among Greece's most successful clubs and have long been part of the country's traditional "Big Three," alongside Olympiacos and AEK Athens.
Fulfilling Benitez's request
The dozen signings fully vindicate former head coach Rafa Benitez, who had asked the club for an "11 plus 1" of transfers, bringing in players chosen mainly for their personality rather than reputation alone, according to the report.
Benitez, the Spanish coach who has previously managed Liverpool, Real Madrid, Chelsea and Napoli among other major clubs, led Panathinaikos before his departure from the role.
Three Moroccans in two weeks
The report said Panathinaikos managed within a fortnight to bring in three quality, expensive Moroccan players, of whom Salah Eddine was the latest, though it did not disclose the financial terms of his deal or the identity of the next player being targeted by the club, known to supporters as "Trifylli," or the Clover, after its emblem.
Panathinaikos are owned by Giannis Alafouzos, under whose tenure the report described the current squad as the club's most talented roster to date.
