Vicente Taborda made the first goal and scored the winner as Panathinaikos beat CSKA Sofia 2-1 at the Athens Olympic Stadium to stay perfect at the top of their Conference League standings with nine points from three games.
Davide Calabria put the Greeks ahead on 41 minutes from a Taborda assist, Dinis Almeida levelled for CSKA three minutes later, and Taborda settled a pulsating contest on 68 minutes after good work from Andrews Tetteh. The scoreline, though, flattered the visitors: Panathinaikos racked up 16 shots, 11 of them on target, and only a nine-save performance from CSKA goalkeeper Fyodor Lapoukhov kept his side in it.
Calabria strikes, Almeida answers, Taborda decides
Panathinaikos dominated the opening exchanges, pinning CSKA back and forcing Lapoukhov into a string of early saves. The breakthrough finally arrived four minutes before half-time, and it was beautifully worked: Taborda drifted inside and threaded the pass, and Calabria — the former AC Milan captain, now reinvented in green — finished to make it 1-0 and send the home crowd into full voice.
The lead lasted barely three minutes. CSKA, who had barely crossed halfway, stunned the stadium on 44 minutes when Stefano Sensi's delivery was turned in by Dinis Almeida to level at 1-1 against the run of play. It was a sucker punch, and for a moment Panathinaikos wobbled, reaching half-time with the game somehow level despite their overwhelming superiority. The full timeline is in the Sportradar match centre, and Sky Sports' match page tells the same tale of Greek pressure meeting Bulgarian resistance.
The second half followed the same pattern, only more frantic. Lapoukhov denied Panathinaikos again and again, until on 68 minutes the pressure finally told. Tetteh drove at the CSKA defence and found Taborda, who finished decisively for 2-1 — a goal he had threatened all night and one that his all-round performance thoroughly deserved.
Lapoukhov's nine saves keep CSKA alive
There are defeats that damage a goalkeeper's reputation and defeats that build one. Lapoukhov finished on the losing side in Athens, but his nine saves — several of them outstanding — were the only reason CSKA were still chasing an equaliser in the closing minutes rather than nursing a heavy beating. Panathinaikos' shot count of 16, with 11 on target, underlines just how one-sided long spells of this game were.
For the hosts, Taborda's influence is growing by the week. An assist for Calabria, the winning goal, and a constant threat between the lines — this was the Argentine playmaker's most complete European performance in a Panathinaikos shirt. Calabria, too, continues to look a shrewd addition, his goal a reward for the attacking intent he showed from right-back all evening.
CSKA deserve credit for their resilience. Almeida's equaliser was clinically taken, and their defensive block, marshalled around the inspired Lapoukhov, frustrated the Greeks for long periods. But resilience without possession or territory eventually cracks, and it did.
So what does this win actually mean?
Panathinaikos remain perfect: nine points from three matches, top of the standings and now firmly in control of their own destiny in the league phase. A direct route into the round of 16 is a realistic target if they maintain this level, and their home form — relentless, front-foot and backed by a ferocious Athens crowd — will frighten anyone drawn to visit. It was a night of fine margins across the competition, as our report on Lincoln Red Imps' 1-0 win over Hajduk Split showed, but Panathinaikos are winning with authority rather than luck.
CSKA Sofia leave with pride but no points from a game in which they were outplayed for long spells. Lapoukhov's heroics give them a platform, yet they will need to offer far more in attack in the remaining fixtures if they are to climb into the play-off places.
Beyond the Final Whistle verdict: Taborda is becoming the face of this Panathinaikos European run — maker of the first, scorer of the winner, and the player CSKA simply could not contain. The Greeks should really have won by three or four, and the fact they only won by one is the sole warning sign. Are Panathinaikos now among the favourites to win this competition outright — and how far can Taborda take them? Let us know what you think in the comments.
