ANORTHOSIS manager Ronny Levy was delighted with his side’s 2-0 victory over defending champions APOEL at the Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium in Larnaca on Sunday afternoon.
“First of all I want to wish APOEL all the best in the second leg of their Champions League match with Lyon,” he said.
“With regards to the game, we were not at our best both physically and psychologically, after losing our last two league encounters to both Aris and AEL,” said Levy.
“But the players approached the game very seriously and I was sure we would win, despite the fact that we played against one of the best teams in the country, led by an excellent manager. Our team has been depleted lately, but now we have shown that our squad is deep enough with many players who can step up.
“After taking an early lead it was easier to play. APOEL tried to get back in the game, but we did not let them do that and deservedly won. Now we must continue to perform like we did today,” Levy concluded.
Jaouad Zairi opened the scoring after 11 minutes and before the visitors knew what hit them, they were 2-0 down as Brazilian forward Evandro Roncatto hit the net again.
APOEL manager Ivan Jovanovic admitted his team were second best on the day: “Within a couple of minutes we made many defensive mistakes, which are usually rare.
“Anorthosis took the lead and then gave us a lot of space which was expected. We were not focused enough to battle our way back into the game though and we deservedly lost.”
Elsewhere, league leaders AEL recorded a 2-0 victory over Ermis Aradippou at the Tsirion Stadium in Limassol.
“We beat a team with plenty of talent and I want to congratulate them on advancing to the next round of the cup,” said AEL boss Charalambos Christodoulou.
“I am not pleased with our effort as I think we were a bit frivolous. I refuse to lose any points due to a lack of concentration which could have happened today.
“We created chances and we were a bit unlucky, but we should have still finished the game off easier.
“I want to thank the players who provided us with this valuable victory,” added Christodoulou, who will now focus on the Cyprus Coca Cola Cup quarter-final second leg against APOEL on Thursday.
Omonia beat Olympiakos 1-0, while Nea Salamina overcame Ethnikos Achnas with the same scoreline.
Aris defeated Anagennisi Derynias 2-0, while Enosis Neon Paralimni and Apollon Limassol played out a 1-1 draw.
In the final match of Round 21, Alki hosted AEK in a Larnaca derby last night at the GSZ Stadium.
Two early Anorthosis goals were enough to beat the champions
