Aris sack coach after cup defeat

FC Aris Thessaloniki sacked coach Richard Tardi on Wednesday night after his side crashed out of the Greek Cup to Xanthi FC.

Paid the price
Tardi, who only succeeded compatriot Henri Michel in November, paid the price for the quarter-final defeat as Xanthi secured a 2-1 victory at the Harilaou stadium to take the tie on away goals after a 2-2 aggregate score.

Second-half goals
Nikolaos Zapropoulos booked Xanthi's place in the last four with his 72nd-minute strike. Imaila M'Ba had given the visitors the lead ten minutes earlier before Nikos Papadopoulos equalised in the 66th minute.

AEK stroll through
They are joined by AEK Athens FC who travelled to FC PAOK Thessaloniki with a slender 2-1 advantage from the first leg but strolled to a 4-0 victory on the night at the Tumba stadium.

Kulakiotis dismissed
Vassilios Tsartas converted a penalty in the 27th minute after Yiorgos Kulakiotis was sent off for fouling Ilija Ivic. Vassilios Lakis shot AEK into a two-goal lead after a neat through ball from the dangerous Themistoklis Nikolaidis, who sealed the tie two minutes into the second half from a Lakis cross. Ivic put the icing on the cake a minute from time with his side's fourth to end a miserable night for PAOK.