Paphos: Apollon achieved a big 2-1 victory over Paphos at the Alfamega Stadium in the 16th matchday of the Cyprus League by Stoiximan, while AEK also achieved a wide-ranging victory, prevailing 4-0 over Anorthosis at the AEK Arena. After Paphos' defeat, Omonia Nicosia found itself alone at the top, although Paphos has one game less. In yesterday's third match, Olympiakos and Aris played to a scoreless draw at GSP, with Aris losing ground in the race for the top and Olympiakos climbing up the standings.
According to Cyprus News Agency, Saturday's matches produced the following results: Ethnikos Achna - AEL Limassol 0-1, APOEL Nicosia - ENP 3-0, and Akritas Chlorakas - Omonia Nicosia 0-4. On Friday, in the first match of the new year, Omonia Aradippou prevailed 1-0 over Freedom 24 Krasava ENY.
Meanwhile, Juan Carlos Carcedo announced his departure from Paphos FC after two and a half years at the helm. The Spanish coach took over the Paphos team on June 24, 2023, and since then has been the driving force behind the team's transformation both domestically and internationally.
In May 2024, Paphos won its first Cup, defeating Omonia 3-0 in the final, and the following season, the team won its first championship, coming also close to winning the double, as it lost to AEK in the Cup final on penalties. At European level, Paphos made its first impressive run last year, reaching the Conference League round of 16, while this year, in its first appearance in the top Champions League competition, it has so far earned 5 points with a win over Villarreal (1-0) and three draws with Olympiacos (0-0), Kairat (0-0), and Monaco (2-2).
Yesterday's game against Apollon was the Spanish coach's last on the Paphos bench, thanking everyone in the team and the city of Paphos. Carcedo will continue his career in Russia with Spartak Moscow.