Panathinaikos A.O.

Police on Friday were seeking the perpetrator behind a shooting on the grounds of the OAKA Olympic Stadium in northern Athens ahead of a basketball match between Panathinaikos and Real Madrid on Thursday night as part of the Euroleague championship.

A 41-year-old Panathinaikos supporter told police at the stadium that he was shot in the leg by someone wielding an air gun.

Panathinaikos says long-delayed payments have been made to Michael Essien and two others in an effort to avoid losing nine points as the Greek club struggles with mounting debts and the threat of relegation.

Panathinaikos basketball club owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos has chosen a different way in European basketball by switching competitions. The Greek champions' strongman announced on Thursday that as of next season the Greens will swap the Euroleague for FIBA's Basketball Champions League.

Greek soccer league organizers have deducted three points from Panathinaikos after the Athens club failed to settle unpaid wages to German defender Jens Wemmer.

Organizers say the points will be returned if the debt is settled. The decision dropped Panathinaikos two places to 11th in the 16-club league with 29 points from 26 matches.

Panathinaikos blasted the government's decision to suspend the Super League instead of punishing those responsible for the decadence of the Greek game, thereby favoring one particular official, it said, without naming PAOK owner Ivan Savvidis.

Deputy Minister for Sports Giorgos Vassiliadis confirmed on Thursday morning a press report according to which the owner of the Panathinaikos basketball club, Dimitris Giannakopoulos has tabled a proposal for the acquisition of the soccer club as well as the Olympic Stadium of Athens in cooperation with foreign funds.

Olympiakos won a classic Greek derby for the Euroleague beating Panathinaikos 87-85 away to put an end to its five-game losing streak in all competitions against its Eternal Rival. The result keeps Olympiakos second at the table and takes Panathinaikos down to seventh.

Greece extended its perfect record in the World Cup qualifiers beating visiting Estonia 87-75 at Iraklio on Friday.

Panathinaikos basketball club owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos is threatening to take the six-time European champion off the Euroleague unless his one-year court ban is reversed - or reduced conseiderably - by the appeals committee of Europe's prime basketball club league.

Olympiakos has returned to the second spot of the Euroleague table with an impressive win over champion Fenerbahce on Thursday, while Panathinaikos went down at Bamberg to put its top-four place at risk.