Panathinaikos winger Pavlos Pantelidis has warned that his team faces a UEFA Conference League fixture list filled with hidden traps, while targeting a return to action around Christmas following surgery.
Speaking on camera to Cosmote TV on Friday, August 28, the 24-year-old player evaluated the Greek club's opponents in the upcoming league phase and provided an update on his rehabilitation process four weeks after undergoing his operation.
Pantelidis stated that he is improving day by day under the constant care of the Panathinaikos medical team. He expressed hope that good health and steady progress will allow him to rejoin the squad by Christmas.
European draw and fixture analysis
Evaluating the Conference League draw, Pantelidis described the schedule as full of potential pitfalls for Conference League standards, pointing specifically to demanding long-distance trips to face Kairat in Kazakhstan and Nordsjaelland in Denmark. He noted that traveling ten hours to play Kairat in Almaty makes the fixture far more complicated than it appears on paper, adding that winter weather conditions during matches in Denmark and Kazakhstan will create tough playing environments.
Pantelidis identified German Bundesliga side Freiburg as the most difficult opponent Panathinaikos will encounter during the league phase. Conversely, he welcomed the news that Panathinaikos will host English Premier League club Brighton at home in Athens rather than traveling to England, noting that his teammates were delighted with that outcome.
Team expectations and knockout targets
Addressing team expectations, Pantelidis emphasized that every match is a mandatory victory when representing Panathinaikos. He observed that the squad features exceptional individual talent early in the season, expressing confidence that it is only a matter of time before the team fully bonds under their manager.
Pantelidis concluded by voicing his desire for Panathinaikos to successfully qualify for the knockout stage of the competition. The Athens team will also face Bosnian side Borac and Bulgarian club CSKA Sofia as part of their six-match league phase schedule.
Panathinaikos, based in the Greek capital of Athens, enter the expanded league phase format of the UEFA Conference League, Europe's third-tier continental tournament. The competition requires teams to navigate six distinct matches against opponents across Europe, balancing heavy travel schedules alongside domestic league commitments in Greece's Super League.
