Masouras out. Tuesday is everything.
Giorgos Masouras is gone. The winger completed a move to Saudi side NEOM on Sunday, signing a two-year deal, and Olympiacos posted a farewell on social media: "Giorgos, we thank you for all the moments we lived together. The whole Olympiacos family wishes you every success in the new chapter of your career" (1). It reads like genuine appreciation, and it should. Six years, goals in Europe, a player who understood what the shirt demands.
But the timing is brutal. The squad is already light in attacking areas after Gabriel Strefezza's €2.8m move to Palermo, and now Masouras follows him out the door. Mendilibar has fewer options when he needs them most.
NEC just showed their vulnerability
NEC lost 1–2 at home to Telstar on Saturday. Their coach Dick Schreuder did not sugarcoat it. "We simply started badly," he said (3). Kaj Sierhuis scored for NEC, Tjaronn Chery was hooked and looked confused by the decision (5). This matters because NEC held Olympiacos 0–0 in Piraeus a week ago and left Karaiskakis with the tie in their hands.
Get the next Olympiacos brief by email
This article went out to subscribers as a brief. Get the next one straight to your inbox, free.
Free · No spam · Unsubscribe anytime
Now the picture is different. The Dutch side are not flying into Tuesday's second leg on a wave of confidence. They are a team that just got beaten at home by Telstar, with their manager publicly irritated and a key player visibly unsettled. Olympiacos should watch that Telstar tape. NEC were opened up early, and they never recovered.
Mariani in the middle
Italian referee Maurizio Mariani has been appointed for the return leg (2). He is a World Cup official, experienced, unflappable. That is helpful. A 0–0 tie in qualifying can pivot on one call, and Mariani is the sort of referee who will not shrink in a Dutch stadium. Olympiacos need him to be invisible and correct. They have suffered enough from fine margins in these rounds.
Nascimento gets his minutes
While the first team reshapes on the fly, Diogo Nascimento is starting regularly at Rio Ave on loan (4). The Portuguese midfielder is getting the game time a 20-year-old needs. Olympiacos will monitor that closely. The club is juggling two realities right now: immediate Champions League survival and long-term squad construction. Nascimento developing in Portugal is the long game. Tuesday is the only game.
Atromitos waits, but first Nijmegen
The Super League opener against Atromitos is August 22. That can wait. Tuesday in Nijmegen is the defining night of this young season. Olympiacos need to score, they need to be braver than they were at home, and they need Mendilibar to get his selection right. NEC are wobbling. The door is open. Kick it down.
