Warning: A club is irresponsibly calling on fans to demonstrate, regardless of what the consequences could be for the club and Greek sports in general.
Who will foot the bill for the damage that may be caused by Panathinaikos fans on Saturday evening in and around the Olympic Stadium?
The Greens have called on their fans to stage a rally of support to the club at the match against Atromitos for the Super League at home at 7.30 pm on Saturday, and in order to gather as many fans as possible at the Olympic Stadium they have reduced ticket prices to a flat rate of 10 euros just for that evening.
One might say that this is meant to be a safety valve for the fans' reaction to what happened seven days earlier at the Karaiskaki Stadium in Piraeus, when the Greens seemed to be hard done by the referee and then to suffer an attack by Olympiakos fans on their way to the dressing room.
Panathinaikos has stressed that the Saturday protest will have to be peaceful, but it cannot possibly ignore what the fan clubs are saying about this Saturday evening.
Fans approached Panathinaikos players on the night of the game at Olympiakos and on the following days and told them not to go out and play against Atromitos because the match would be suspended due to fan action anyway.
They also said that there is no point in this league going on as it is, adding that they would take matters to their own hands.
This serious warning should not go unnoticed by the club or by police authorities. Much as they both want the game to go by peacefully, they will need to act fast to ensure that this does not turn out into another night of shame for Greek football, while there is still time to avert it.
If Panathinaikos allow fans to go beyond control and stage clashes with the police or not allow the game to proceed normally, they will be equally responsible to Olympiakos for being unable to control their own fans seven days earlier, to the dismay of the Greens.
Let's not enter a vicious circle of violence. You have been warned!
by George Georgakopoulos
source: sportingreece
