The decision of the head of the KED, Stephen Bennett, to bring back Greek referees in the derbies of the Greek league has caused big reactions in the Super League, starting with the appointment of Anastasios Sidiropoulos to the Athenian classico between Panathinaikos and AEK. He was replaced last-minute with Georgi Kabakov (Bulgaria).
In fact, the EPO executive committee unanimously decided that Takis Baltakos should contact the English chief referee to ask him to replace Sidiropoulos with a foreign referee in the Athenian classico, which will be held on Sunday in Leoforos. It is worth noting that the president of EPO made it clear in his statement that the federation had nothing to do with the appointment of a Greek referee in the derby. According to information from sdna.gr, the owner of Olympiacos and – ex officio – vice-president of the EPO, even talked about stopping the championship at the meeting of the Executive Committee of the Federation on Thursday morning. However, Makis Gagatsis was also upset: “We and Mr. Savvidis have made it known that we are in favor of foreign referees in all derbies,” said the managing director and vice president of PAOK.
Source: Hellas Posts