PAOK

Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov, who recently signed a contract with Greek football club PAOK, received a warm welcome by the supporters of the club at the Toumba stadium in Thessaloniki during his presentation on Thursday .

Due to the impressive turnout of the fans, the stadium staff had to open all gates in order take in all the supporters, the website of PAOK informs.

The family of a diehard PAOK Thessaloniki fan fulfilled the man last wish and scattered his ashes on the team’s pitch last week.
The fan, Efthymis Bakalis, had emigrated from Greece and lived out his life in Chicago, where he died in 2009.
Nevertheless, he told his three daughters that he wanted to be cremated and have his ashes scattered at PAOK’s iconic Toumba stadium.

By George Georgakopoulos

One man was stabbed and several others slightly injured as rival Thessaloniki club fans clashed late on Friday at an event held by Aris supporters.

New Democracy MEP Theodoros Zagorakis had his immunity lifted on Wednesday by the European Parliament so he could stand trial in Greece in connection to an accident that happened at PAOK?s Toumba Stadium in May 2010, when he was the club?s chairman.

The ex-soccer player is accused of failing to abide by safety regulations and being responsible for an employee?s injury.

A 30-year-old man arrested in Athens on suspicion of setting fire to a cafe owned by Giorgos Tzavellas (photo), who plays for PAOK soccer club, is the head of the Ilioupoli branch of Olympiakos supporters’ club, sources said on Tuesday.

By George Georgakopoulos

The reported bust-up in the Greece camp between PAOK’s Giorgos Tzavellas and Olympiakos’s Yiannis Maniatis marks the end of an era in the national team, that started in 2001 with the arrival of German manager Otto Rehhagel. It appears that the domestic problems of Greek soccer have once again destroyed the health of the national team.

PAOK has appealed against a three-point deduction to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after crowd trouble eventually cost it a place in next season's Champions League, the Greek club said on Tuesday.

The government has pledged to meet with soccer officials after Easter to tackle unruliness in the game following wild scenes at the Greek Cup semifinal between PAOK and Olympiakos in Thessaloniki on Wednesday night, which led to seven arrests being made.