Fiorentina and PAOK played out to a 1-1 draw at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in Europa League action on Thursday night.
A late free kick strike from Manuel Pasqual cancelled out Martens’ goal, securing the Viola’s safe passage to the next round of the competition with two matches remaining.
Agree with our ratings? Have your say in the comments below.
Fiorentina
Ciprian Tatarusanu – 6 – Ordinary
Could do nothing to stop PAOK’s only goal. Other than that, just another day at the office for the Romanian.
Nenad Tomovic – 6.5 – Bullish
Was a force to be reckoned with down the right flank and came close to transforming one of his runs into a deserved goal.
Jose Maria Basanta – 6 – Sluggish
Was at fault, along with Rodriguez, on PAOK’s goal as they gave far too much space to Golasa to find Martens for the goal.
Gonzalo Rodriguez – 5.5 – Napping
Had put together a good performance until minute 81 when he failed to tightly mark Golasa, leading to the match’s opening goal.
Manuel Pasqual – 7 – Rescuer
Lead the Viola out of the darkness by scoring a wonderful free kick that was enough to secure the Viola safe passage to the next round.
Jasmin Kurtic – 5.5 – Depleted
Was second best to the ball throughout the night and looked visibly tired. In need of a rest.
David Pizarro – 6.5 – Metronome
The best player on the pitch in the first half but was carelessly at fault for giving the ball away that sparked the away side’s goal.
Andrea Lazzari – 6 – Engaged
Surprising performance as the Italian has not featured regularly this season. Was combative for 60 minutes before leaving the field for Marin.
Juan Cuadrado – 6.5 – Energized
Looks to be slowly returning to the form that made him one of the Serie A’s best last year. Needs to be more selfish as too often the Colombian wasted possession by looking for Gomez.
Mario Gomez – 5.5 – Struggling
Missed three chances that would have helped the Viola on their way, but managed to play the entire 90 minutes which is a victory in and of itself.
Juan Manuel Vargas – 6.5 – Vibrant
One of the best players on the field in the first half as his left foot caused countless problems for the Greek rearguard.
Substitutes
Marko Marin – 6.5 – Ready
Came on for the final half hour and was immediately a force to be reckoned with. Is the German ready to finally impress in a Viola jersey?
Borja Valero – 6 – Lucid
Marked his 100th appearance in a Viola jersey by bringing his usual organization and passing to the pitch after coming on for Vargas.
Khouma Babacar – N/A
PAOK Salonika
Panagiotis Glykos – 6.5 – Stopper
Overall was solid. Made two excellent saves from Mario Gomez, though some blame could be put on the striker.
Stelios Kitsiou – 5 – Foul
It was his foul on Khouma Babacar which led to Pasqual’s equaliser. Should have known better really.
Miguel Vitor – 5.5 – Fight
Found life difficult against Gomez and came out second best more often than not. Was lucky the German was having an off night.
Giorgos Katsikas – 6 – Honest
Did a little better than his defensive partner. Put in a few good tackles and marshalled the defence well.
Nikolaos Spyropoulos – 5.5 – Off
Had a poor night against Cuadrado and was beaten on a number of occasions.
Alexandros Tziolis – 6.5 – Best
Was the Greek side’s best midfielder and maybe even the best on the park, though he spent a lot of the time playing as a defender, where he was equally as effective.
?Theofanis Tzandaris – 5.5 – Suffered
Didn’t have the best of matches against David Pizarro in the centre of midfield, and often found himself outnumbered.
Eyal Golasa – 6.5 – Maker
The PAOK goal was all about the Israeli. Intercepted Basanta’s poor pass to then release Athanasiadis. Was certainly their creative spark.
Facundo Pereyra – 5 – Pulled
Had a nightmare first have littered with mistakes which could have cost his side. Rightly hauled off at half time.
Stefanos Athanasiadis – 6 – Assist
Made the goal with the help of Golasa and at times made a nuisance of himself. Also had a goal ruled out for offside.
Dimitrios Salpingidis – 5 – Veteran
Not the best game the veteran striker has played and was taken off for the Martens midway through the second half, which was a masterstroke.
Substitutes
Hedwiges Maduro – 6 – Solid
Brought a bit more solidity to the central midfield in the second period.
Maarten Martens – 6.5 – Right
The right man at the right time. Got the goal which almost gave the Greeks a famous win.
Giorgos Tzavellas – N/A
