PAOK and Panathinaikos both advanced through the second qualifying round of UEFA club competitions on Thursday, setting up third-round ties against Anderlecht and CSKA 1948 Sofia respectively.
PAOK beat Dynamo Kyiv 2-0 at Toumba to progress 5-2 on aggregate, while Panathinaikos drew 2-2 with Hungarian side Paksi at the OAKA stadium to go through 4-3 on aggregate.
Konstantelias double seals PAOK's passage
Giannis Konstantelias was the decisive figure for PAOK, scoring both goals against Dynamo Kyiv. The attacking midfielder opened the scoring in first-half stoppage time and added a second in the 48th minute, giving Razvan Lucescu's side a comfortable overall win after their 3-2 first-leg victory in Poland.
PAOK will now face Belgian side Anderlecht in the third qualifying round of the Europa League. The first leg is scheduled for Thursday, August 6 at Toumba, with the return match on August 13 in Belgium.
Panathinaikos survive late scare
Panathinaikos needed a late equaliser to secure their passage against Paksi at the OAKA. Peto put the Hungarians ahead in the 35th minute, but Jaguticic levelled just before half-time in the 44th minute. Gyorfi restored Paksi's advantage in the 57th minute before Rastofer scored what proved to be the decisive goal in the 85th minute, making it 2-2 on the night.
That result, combined with their 2-1 first-leg win in Hungary, took Panathinaikos through 4-3 on aggregate. They will face CSKA 1948 Sofia in the third qualifying round of the Conference League, with the first leg set for Wednesday, August 5 at the OAKA at 21:30. The return in Sofia is scheduled for Tuesday, August 11, though the kickoff time for that match had not yet been announced at the time of publication.
Greece gains ground in UEFA rankings
Both results also contributed to Greece's standing in the UEFA country coefficient. PAOK's victory over Dynamo Kyiv added 200 points to the Greek total, while the Panathinaikos draw with Paksi brought a further 100. Greece reached 41,112 points and remained 12th in the European rankings.
Turkey (47,175 points), Czech Republic (43,425) and Poland (42,825) all sit above Greece in the table, and each also added points on the same evening. Greece is targeting a place in the top ten, which takes on added importance from the 2027-28 season, when the champion of each top-ten nation will earn a direct berth in the Champions League group stage.
One development that marginally favours Greece's pursuit is that Turkey lost a representative during the same round: Basaksehir were eliminated by Inter Turku and will play no further part in European competition this season, leaving Turkey with four clubs active rather than five. All five of Greece's representatives remain in contention.
Third qualifying round draw
The full slate of Europa League third qualifying round ties is as follows:
- Larne (Northern Ireland) vs Iberia Tbilisi (Georgia)
- Lincoln Red Imps (Gibraltar) vs Omonia (Cyprus)
- Kuopio (Finland) vs Universitatea Craiova (Romania)
- Shamrock Rovers (Ireland) vs Egnatia (Albania)
- Lech Poznan (Poland) vs KI Klaksvik (Faroe Islands)
- Thun (Switzerland) vs Vikingur (Iceland)
- Hradec Kralove (Czech Republic) vs Besiktas (Turkey)
- Jagiellonia Bialystok (Poland) vs Rangers (Scotland)
- PAOK (Greece) vs Anderlecht (Belgium)
- Paphos (Cyprus) vs Salzburg (Austria)
- Benfica (Portugal) vs Hearts (Scotland)
- Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel) vs CSKA Sofia (Bulgaria)
- Ferencvaros (Hungary) vs Gornik Zabrze (Poland)
In the Conference League third qualifying round, Panathinaikos face CSKA 1948 alongside ties including Ajax vs Shelbourne, Braga vs Dynamo Minsk, Partizan vs Tobol, Sheriff Tiraspol vs St Gallen, and Dynamo Kyiv vs Karabagh. The full bracket comprises 30 ties.
