Xanthi beats PAOK 1-0

Posted Monday, September 27, 2010 by YAHOO Sport

ATHENS, Greece (AP)—PAOK lost 1-0 at Xanthi and AEK Athens was beaten 3-1 at promoted Volos on Sunday in setbacks for two Greek league title contenders.

Xanthi forward Mauro Poy converted a first-half penalty to give his team its first win of the season and inflict PAOK’s first loss.

PAOK’s chances of a second-half comeback faded when captain Pablo Contreras was dismissed with a second yellow card for a badly timed tackle.

At Volos, Khalifa Sankare, Mario Breska and Javier Umbides scored for the hosts. AEK had equalized early in the second half through Nikos Lyberopoulos.

PAOK’s fierce Thessaloniki rival, Aris, had to wait until stoppage time to beat Ergotelis 1-0 thanks to a goal from Danijel Cesarec.

In other matches Sunday, Kavala won 1-0 at Iraklis and Kerkyra drew 1-1 at Larissa.

Olympiakos, which beat Asteras 3-0 on Saturday, leads the league after four rounds with nine points. Panathinaikos is next on eight points after defeating Panionios 2-0 Saturday. Volos, Iraklis and Kerkyra follow on seven points.

PAOK squandered an early scoring chance when Vladan Ivic shot wide from the six-yard area after a cross from Pablo Garcia in the 14th minute.

Xanthi’s winning penalty was awarded in the 24th when Contreras fouled Marcelinho in the area.

Poy nearly doubled the lead in the 38th when his powerful shot forced goalkeeper Mario Kresic to palm the ball over the bar.

PAOK’s best scoring chance came when goalkeeper Michael Gspurning made a diving save to a low drive from Vieirinha on the edge of the area in the 87th.

At Volos, the hosts went ahead to a ninth-minute strike by Sankare and could have gone further ahead in the first half but for poor finishing.

AEK’s Rafik Djebbour had a header hit the crossbar in the 43rd. AEK rallied in the second half to equalize through Lyberopoulos, the veteran forward heading in a cross by Savvas Gentsoglou in the 56th.

Volos went ahead in the 83rd against the run of play when Mario Breska latched on to a cross by Yiannis Zaradoukas and slotted the ball into the net from close range.

AEK pressed forward to try and equalize but was exposed by Volos’ counterattacks. In injury time, Ilias Solakis was brought down by Traianos Dellas and Umbides coolly converted the penalty.

After the final whistle, enraged AEK supporters smashed chairs and threw them at their team’s players and coach Dusan Bajevic.