A late turnaround at Toumba

PAOK beat Heraklis 2-1 at the Toumba Stadium in Thessaloniki in the seventh Super League matchday, with the winner arriving deep into stoppage time. The match, played on Sunday, 18 October, featured two Heraklis goals cancelled after VAR reviews, a penalty that was awarded and then overturned, and a red card that left the visitors with ten men. Heraklis had been unbeaten in five matches after a 2-0 win over Levadiakos on the previous matchday, and this defeat ended that run. The victory returned PAOK to winning ways.

Heraklis lead, then two goals are cancelled

Heraklis went ahead in the 49th minute when Pedro Marques finished a move with Carlos Soria using a right-footed placed shot. The goal broke a drought of roughly a decade at Toumba, since Leozinho had scored in a 1-0 Heraklis win at the stadium on 14 February 2016. Marques headed a second Heraklis goal in the 59th minute, but after a VAR check referee Fotias cancelled it for an offensive foul by Ross on Kenny. Heraklis had another goal ruled out in the 84th minute, when Nanou finished a long run with a powerful right-footed shot, because Fotias judged a foul by Heraklis outside the area after the VAR review.

PAOK level, then a penalty is overturned

Simon Banza headed PAOK level at 1-1 in the 62nd minute from a cross by Zivkovic, and a VAR check found no earlier foul by Kenny. In the 75th minute, Fotias awarded PAOK a penalty after contact between Heraklis goalkeeper Athanasiadis and Diagne. A VAR review then found the PAOK attacker offside, the spot kick was cancelled, and the score remained 1-1. The sequence of reviews kept the match open until the final minutes, and Heraklis coach Walter Mazzarri had already protested earlier decisions in the game.

Michailidis winner and Mazzarri's anger

Ross was shown a second yellow card at the same moment, leaving Heraklis with ten players in the 84th minute. Zivkovic delivered the resulting free kick, and Yiannis Michailidis rose to head the winner from close range in the 90+2 minute. Mazzarri, the Italian Heraklis coach, was reported to have started to leave the dugout after the goal, and members of his staff held him back. Michailidis's header decided the result, while Heraklis finished the match on the losing side.

Heraklis post and the next fixtures

At the final whistle, Heraklis posted only the numbers 80, 11 and 17 on social media. Those digits appear to refer to 1980, 2011 and 2017, years in which the club was relegated for non-sporting reasons, and the post suggests the club attributes this defeat to similar causes. Next matchday Heraklis host Kifisia, while PAOK travel to Crete to face OFI. The post came as the match ended with Heraklis down to ten men, which adds to the dispute over the officiating.