Kouka’s double secures Greek Super League title for Olympiacos

Taiye Taiwo

•
Kouka’s double secures Greek Super League title for Olympiacos image

Ahmed Hassan Kouka was the hero for Olympiacos as his two goals helped them defeat Panathinaikos 3-1 and win the 2020-21 Greek Super League title on Sunday.

The 28-year-old who recently returned from an injury lay-off replaced Senegal's Ousseynou Ba in the 36th minute and he made a statement in Piraeus with a goal in each half.

Former Manchester United forward Federico Macheda broke the deadlock for Panathinaikos with his strike from the penalty spot in the 31st minute but Kouka ensured both teams went into the break level, thanks to his stoppage-time equaliser.

The leveller inspired Olympiacos’ fight-back and the Egypt striker turned the game around with another goal in the 72nd minute. The tense encounter which saw eight yellow cards distributed to both teams finally came to an end after Bruma sealed maximum points for the hosts in the 97th minute.

Kouka has scored 10 league goals so far in 19 league outings this term which stretched his tally to 15 goals across all competitions.

The victory secured consecutive league titles for Pedro Martins' side as they maintain a 22-point lead above second-placed Aris with seven Super League matches remaining.

Also in action at the Stadio Georgios Karaiskaki was Morocco's Youssef El-Arabi who played from start to finish but he could not extend his dominance as Olympiacos' top scorer with 20 goals in 26 league appearances this season.

Panathinaikos, on the other hand, had Senegal's Cheikh Niasse and DR Congo forward Yeni Ngbakoto in action.

Sunday's result extended Olympiacos' Super League winning streak to six matches, however, El-Arabi and Kouka will aim to help the Legend stretch their fine run when they visited third-placed PAOK for their next fixture on April 18.

Taiye Taiwo