Olympiacos F.C. vs Pafos FC

Olympiacos have hit the ground running in their Greek Super League title defence, winning all three of their opening fixtures, capped off by a resounding 5-0 demolition of Panserraikos on Saturday. That extended José Luis Mendilibar’s winning streak to eight matches – his best since taking charge in February 2024 – while the Piraeus giants have now kept five consecutive clean sheets. Back in the UCL league phase for a record 36th time among Greek clubs, Olympiacos will look to improve on a poor recent record at this level, with just two wins from their last 20 group/league stage matches [2W, 2D, 16L]. Yet home advantage could prove key, as the Red-Whites are unbeaten in their last seven continental fixtures at the Karaiskakis Stadium [5W, 2D]. The Red-Whites have faced a Cypriot side on ten occasions in Europe, including qualifying, winning five times [5W, 2D, 3L]. New signing Mehdi Taremi made an immediate impact on his Olympiacos debut at the weekend, coming off the bench to score twice after joining from Inter Milan, though intriguingly he has netted more for Iran [13] than at club level [10] since the start of 2024. Striker Roman Yaremchuk is injured, as Gelson Martins is a doubt after limping off last time out, while goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis is suspended. Meanwhile, Ayoub El Kaabi is expected to start upfront in a 4—2—3—1 formation.

Cypriot champions Pafos will make their UCL main draw debut by making the short trip to Olympiacos. They will arrive on the back of their first defeat of the season, a narrow 1-0 loss to Apollon Limassol last weekend. That setback should not overshadow their impressive UCL qualifying campaign, where they ousted Maccabi Tel Aviv, Dynamo Kyiv and Red Star Belgrade, conceding only three goals across six matches. Making their debut in the league phase, Pafos have also proven formidable away from home, winning all three qualifiers on the road. This will be Pafos’ first meeting with Greek opposition in Europe, and they come with pedigree — losing only one of their last 12 UEFA matches [7W, 4D, 1L]. The Paphos-based team tend to keep things tight too, with just one of those 12 games producing more than two goals. Forward Jajá has been their talisman, with the Cypriots unbeaten in 12 of his 13 scoring appearances [9W, 3D]. Juan Carlos Carcedo would be happy to have a fully fit squad, as he may deploy Anderson Silva in the frontline of a 4—2—3—1 setup.