Konstantinou fires Panathinaikos

Panathinaikos FC are halfway towards completing the double after sweeping aside Olympiacos CFP 3-1 on Saturday to win the Greek Cup for the 16th time.

Superb start
The Greens started superbly and were ahead inside three minutes when Markus Münch crossed for Dimitris Papadopoulos to head in. Olympiacos coach Nikos Alefantos responded by making two substitutions in the first 22 minutes, bringing on two attacking players. Rather than galvanising the side, however, Olympiacos struggled to find their shape, notably in the hole vacated by the withdrawal of Grigoris Georgatos.

Profligate finishing
Panathinaikos continued to dominate, only for wasteful finishing - notably from Michalis Konstantinou - to prevent them extending their lead by half-time. Olympiacos punished their great rivals in the 65th minute, Giovanni nodding in the equaliser.

Two for Konstantinou
The Piraeus side were only on terms for three minutes, though, as Konstantinou atoned for earlier misses with a deft chip. With ten minutes remaining the Cypriot sealed the cup for Panathinaikos and the man of the match award for himself, taking advantage of a slip by Christian Karembeu to complete the scoring.

Title hope
Panathinaikos, who have not won the championship for eight seasons, lead the Alpha Ethniki by two points from Olympiacos.