Greece stun Serbia with late Douvikas winner in Nations League comeback

Stay connected to Greek City Times for Free on Google News
Click NOW

Greece produced a dramatic comeback in Belgrade, defeating Serbia 2-1 with late goals from Christos Tzolis and Anastasios Douvikas to make a winning start in League A of the Nations League.

The Ethniki fell behind inside the opening four minutes but responded with an increasingly dominant performance, creating chances and refusing to give up despite Serbia’s early advantage.

Serbia struck first through Andrija Zivkovic in the fourth minute. Dusan Tadic received the ball on the left before cutting it across the area, where Zivkovic was left unmarked and calmly finished past Konstantinos Tzolakis.

Greece almost responded immediately.

A minute later, Konstantinos Karetsas collected a pass from Tzolis, cut inside and curled an effort towards the far corner, only for the ball to strike the post.

The visitors continued to threaten from the wings, with Tzolis and Karetsas causing Serbia problems.

In the 14th minute, Karetsas tested goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, who pushed his effort behind for a corner.

Greece created another promising opportunity shortly afterwards when Giannis Vagiannidis delivered from the right and Konstantinos Kostoulas attempted to finish on the move, but his effort went wide.

The pressure continued, with Tzolis creating another dangerous opportunity in the 20th minute before Serbia came close to doubling its lead when Luka Jovic missed from close range in the 30th.

Milinkovic-Savic then produced one of Serbia’s most important saves of the first half, denying Tzolis in the 39th minute to preserve the hosts’ 1-0 advantage.

Greece continued to push after the break.

Retsos came close in the 49th minute after the ball fell to him inside the six yard box, but his finish went straight at Milinkovic-Savic.

Four minutes later, Pavlidis appeared to have a clear opportunity after a cross from Retsos and a touch from Kostoulas, but the Greek striker could not convert. The incident was reviewed by VAR, with the original decision standing.

Greece’s persistence finally paid off in the 68th minute.

Pavlidis brought the ball down before laying it off to Tzolis on the left. The Greek winger needed no second invitation, firing a powerful diagonal left footed shot that struck the inside of the post before finding the net for 1-1.

The equaliser changed the momentum of the match.

Greece continued to attack in search of a winner, with Tete creating another opportunity in the 77th minute after driving between the lines and entering the Serbian penalty area.

The decisive moment arrived deep into stoppage time.

In the 90+4th minute, Greece found the breakthrough it had been chasing. A superb cross from Tsimikas found Douvikas, who finished to send the Greek bench and travelling supporters into celebration.

The late strike completed a memorable 2-1 comeback in Belgrade and gave Greece all three points from a match in which the team repeatedly responded to adversity.

The result also gained further significance after the Netherlands and Germany drew 1-1, leaving Greece alone at the top of the group.

For Ivan Jovanovic’s side, it was a statement opening to the Nations League campaign, combining attacking ambition, resilience and a dramatic finish to secure a memorable victory on Serbian soil.

Stay updated with the latest news from Greece and around the world on greekcitytimes.com.
Contact our newsroom to share your updates, stories, photos, or videos. Follow GCT on Google News and Apple News.