Image Credits: Imago Images
Former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez is facing a genuine crisis moment at Panathinaikos, with the club hierarchy viewing Sunday’s clash against OFI in the Greece Super League as a de‑facto final for the veteran coach’s future.
The Spaniard arrived in Athens amid huge fanfare last summer, handed a lucrative two-and-a-half-year deal worth a reported£4.4million per season.
Greek outlet SPORT24 reports that the club’s leadership now view the OFI game at the Pankritio Stadium as a “final” for Benitez, with his position described as precarious if Panathinaikos fail to respond with a strong result.
The sense is that patience is running out for a high‑profile coach on a big contract whose team has yet to fully convince in the title race. A positive display and three points could buy him breathing space and reset the narrative heading into the decisive phase of the season, but anything less may see the board pull the trigger ahead of the play‑offs.
In the background, preparations for a potential post‑Benitez era are already under way.
SPORT24 claims Panathinaikos have held initial talks with Igor Biscan they quietly explore alternatives should they decide to make a change.
Biscan is a familiar name to Liverpool supporters too, having spent five years at Anfield between 2000 and 2005 and playing a valuable squad role in the club’s famous 2004/05 Champions League‑winning campaign under Benitez himself.
The former Reds defender has already built up a pretty varied coaching CV since hanging up his boots. He started out at Croatian side Rudeš in 2016, winning promotion from the second tier in his first full season in charge.
That success earned him a move to Olimpija Ljubljana in Slovenia, where he achieved a league and cup double in 2017/18 before leaving the club after a dispute with the hierarchy. He then returned to Croatia to take over Rijeka in 2018, leading them into Europe and lifting the domestic cup before resigning in 2019 amid what he described as difficult working conditions and a lack of wider support.
He last coached Qatar Stars League club Al-Ahli.
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