Olympiacos’ fierce derby with Panathinaikos is abandoned after a player is struck by a FIREWORK while warming up on the touchline – as his team-mates refuse to return from the dressing room to finish the clash
- Olympiacos and Panathinaikos are one of the most heated European derbies
- Sunday’s match was abandoned after a player was struck by a fan’s fireworks
- Listen to the latest episode of the Mail Sport podcast ‘It all begins!’
Olympiacos’ Greek Super League match against Panathinaikos was abandoned on Sunday after a player was struck by fireworks.
The two Greek teams, who have long been bitter and fierce rivals, were tied at 1-1 before the match was called off early in the second half.
Five minutes after half-time, Panathinaikos substitute Juankar started the warm-up on the touchline and was hit by fireworks thrown by the crowd.
The incident took place shortly after the hosts scored the equalizer.
He fell to the ground at the edge of the field and was quickly checked by his teammates, before play was suspended for about an hour as players left the field through the tunnel.
Olympiacos’ match with Panathinaikos was abandoned after a player was hit by fireworks
Juankar was treated on the sidelines and then taken away in a doctor’s buggy
The Spaniard, who is said to have suffered hearing loss after a blow, was treated on the sidelines and then taken away in an ambulance.
Shortly after the incident, while the player was being treated, Panathinaikos tweeted: “Fireworks are falling on the players of our team who are warming up. Juankar lies injured on the ground.
‘Interruption of the match. Our team retreats to the locker room.’
While fans were still in the stadium during the long delay, the club later provided an update, revealing players were reluctant to return from the changing rooms.
‘An hour has passed since stoppage time in the derby. Our team remains in the locker room,” Panathinaikos added.
The decision to abandon the match was communicated to fans via a Tannoy announcement around 9:30 PM local time.
The fierce derby between Olympiakos and Panathinaikos has a history of stoppages, such as in 2019 when the referee had to stop the match just minutes after a group of 30 fans attacked players in the dugout.
The fierce derby was called off in 2019 after a group of fans attacked the Olympiacos dugout
Police were also forced to use tear gas to control crowd chaos outside the stadium.
Olympiacos were awarded the 1-0 win in 2019 despite the match being cancelled.
It is not yet clear how Sunday’s canceled match will be recorded in the record books.
Panathinaikos confirmed the match had been abandoned, tweeting: “The referee has closed the scoresheet and the fate of the match will be decided in court.”