European Football: Olympiakos and the once-in-a-century miracle

Before the 2023/2024 Conference League final, Fiorentina was the team that experts rated higher in terms of winning chances. Because in terms of development level, Greek football cannot be compared to the football of the boot-shaped country.

Don't forget, this is the second consecutive time Fiorentina have made it to the final of the Conference League. Last season, coach Vincenzo Italiano's team also reached the final, but they were defeated by West Ham United with a score of 2-1, and missed out on the title.

However, under the guidance of coach Jose Luis Mendilibar, Olympiakos played excellently against Fiorentina with their reputation and superior squad quality. The only goal of striker Ayoub El Kaabi in the 116th minute helped the team nicknamed Thrylos win the championship.

Thus, Olympiakos became the first team to win the European championship. It can be said that the 1-0 victory over Fiorentina was a miracle not only for Olympiakos but also for Greek football, after the championship at EURO 2004, the championship that made football fans extremely surprised and admired.

As for coach Jose Luis Mendilibar, this is the second consecutive time he has enjoyed the joy of victory in the final match of the continental arena. Specifically, last season, coach Jose Luis Mendilibar helped Sevilla win the Europa League title.

It should be noted that the Spanish strategist has only been in charge at Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium for 3 months. Obviously, coach Jose Luis Mendilibar is the one who contributed the most to the 2023/2024 Conference League championship of the team nicknamed Thrylos.

The youngest tournament (established in 2021), considered the third tier in the UEFA system, has just had a new champion named Olympiakos, a team from the "land of myth". In the previous two seasons (2021/2022 and 2022/2023), AS Roma (Italy) and West Ham United (England) respectively won the championship./.