2013–14 APOEL F.C. season

APOEL

2013–14 season
Chairman	Phivos Erotokritou (Until 4 December 2013) Prodromos Petrides (From 4 December 2013)
Manager	Paulo Sérgio (Until 4 October 2013) Giorgos Donis (From 11 October 2013)
Stadium	GSP Stadium, Nicosia
Cypriot First Division	Winners
Cypriot Cup	Winners
LTV Super Cup	Winners
UEFA Champions League	Third qualifying round
UEFA Europa League	Group stage
Top goalscorer	League: Gustavo Manduca (13) All: Gustavo Manduca (16)
Highest home attendance	18,959 vs Zulte Waregem (29 August 2013 – UEFA Europa League)
Lowest home attendance	3,246 vs Alki Larnaca (19 February 2014 – Cypriot Cup)
Average home league attendance	8,520 (all competitions)
Home colours Away colours Third colours
← 2012–13 2014–15 →

The 2013–14 season was APOEL's 74th season in the Cypriot First Division and 86th year in existence as a football club.

Season review

The historical domestic treble

APOEL completed a historical domestic treble during the 2013–14 season, winning all the titles in Cyprus, the League, the Cup and the Super Cup.

Head coach and chairman changes during season

Head coach change: On 4 October 2013, a day after the home defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt for the group stage of the UEFA Europa League, the club announced the termination of Paulo Sérgio's contract, due to a disappointing run of results domestically and abroad.^[1][2] Paulo Sérgio was replaced by Greek coach Giorgos Donis, who (on 11 October 2013) signed a contract until the end of the 2013–14 season.^[3]

Chairman change: Phivos Erotokritou, the chairman of APOEL since November 2008, resigned and on 4 December 2013 he was replaced by Prodromos Petrides, who had served again as chairman of APOEL from 2001 to 2006.^[4]

Pre-season and friendlies

The first training session for the season took place on 21 June 2013 at APOEL's training centre. On 6 July 2013, the team flew to Obertraun in Austria to perform the main stage of their pre-season training and returned to Cyprus on 20 July 2013.^[5] During the pre-season training stage in Austria, APOEL played six friendly matches against FK Baumit Jablonec (1–2 loss), SC Paderborn 07 (0–2 loss), FC Zbrojovka Brno (1–1 draw), FC Slovácko (2–2 draw), PAOK (0–1 loss) and TSG 1899 Hoffenheim (0–3 loss). After its return to Cyprus, the team played one more friendly match against Doxa Katokopias at GSP Stadium on 23 July 2013, in a match which APOEL won by 2–1.

LTV Super Cup

On 17 August 2013, APOEL beat Apollon Limassol 1–0 at GSP Stadium to lift Cypriot Super Cup. Paulo Sérgio's men picked up their first silverware of the season thanks to a 35th-minute goal from Portuguese defender Mário Sérgio.^[6]

Cypriot First Division

Regular season

On 2 September 2013, APOEL opened their competitive season with a 3–0 win at GSP Stadium against Enosis Neon Paralimni. Vinícius opened the scoring in the 58th minute, while Constantinos Charalambides and João Guilherme scored two late goals, both from direct free kicks. On 14 September 2013, APOEL suffered its first league defeat after losing 1–2 at AEL Limassol. Edwin Ouon and Orlando Sá scored two first half goals for AEL and APOEL scored in the 57th minute, when Diego Gaúcho put the ball into his own net after a cross from Esmaël Gonçalves. On 23 September 2013, APOEL drew 1–1 at home against AEK Larnaca. Nestoras Mitidis put the visitors in front in the 39th minute and Efstathios Aloneftis scored the equaliser for APOEL with a stunning solo effort in the 56th minute. On 28 September 2013, APOEL beat Nea Salamina by 1–0 at Ammochostos Stadium, with Mário Sérgio netting the game's only goal in the 45th minute, after trying a weak shot from the right side of the box that tricked Salamina's goalkeeper Srđan Blažić. On 7 October 2013, APOEL won Aris Limassol 1–0 at home under caretaker coach Yiannos Ioannou, with Nuno Morais scoring the only goal of the match in the 13th minute. On 19 October 2013, APOEL lost 0–2 against Ermis Aradippou at Ammochostos Stadium, in Giorgos Donis debut as APOEL coach. Henrique scored the first goal for Ermis in the 81st minute by illegally using his right hand and the same player made it 2–0 from a penalty kick in the injury time. On 28 October 2013, APOEL earned three valuable points after beating Anorthosis 1–0 at GSP Stadium, thanks to a 52nd-minute goal by João Guilherme. On 2 November 2013, APOEL's disappointing run continued as the champions were defeated 0–2 by Apollon Limassol at Tsirion Stadium, thanks to Fotios Papoulis and Marcos Gullón second half goals. After this defeat APOEL dropped to the 6th place, eight points behind leaders Apollon Limassol. On 11 November 2013, APOEL easily beat last-placed Alki Larnaca 3–0 at home behind closed doors, with two goals from Mario Budimir and an own goal from Alki's player Constantinos Laifis. On 23 November 2013, APOEL drew 1–1 with Doxa Katokopias at Makario Stadium. Ricardo Fernandes put Doxa ahead after 41 minutes and Gustavo Manduca equalised for APOEL with a penalty in the 67th minute. On 2 December 2013, APOEL recorded their biggest win (by that time) in the season, beating AEK Kouklia 5–0 at home. Esmaël Gonçalves scored a hat-trick, while Gustavo Manduca and Constantinos Charalambides added a goal apiece in APOEL's victory. On 2 December 2013, APOEL beat Ethnikos Achna 2–0 at Dasaki Stadium, thanks to a goal from the penalty spot by Gustavo Manduca and a late goal from Cillian Sheridan. On 16 December 2013, APOEL beat Omonia 2–0 in Nicosia's derby and climbed up to fourth place. Gustavo Manduca opened the proceedings nine minutes after the interval with his fourth goal of the season, while Nuno Morais set up the final score 15 minutes from time after an individual effort. After this match APOEL were fourth with 26 points, only four points behind the leaders duo AEL and Apollon. On 22 December 2013, APOEL sealed their fourth consecutive league win by beating Enosis Neon Paralimni 3–0 at Tasos Markou Stadium. Efstathios Aloneftis got APOEL on the board just four minutes into the match and Marcelo Oliveira scored another one early in the second half, while Vinícius made it 0–3, in APOEL's final match of the year 2013. On 4 January 2014, APOEL drew 2–2 at home against AEL Limassol and remained four points five points off the top. Monteiro opened the scoring for AEL after only six minutes, but Efstathios Aloneftis and Gustavo Manduca struck twice in the space of three minutes to give APOEL the lead, before Orlando Sá equalise for AEL in the 34th minute. On 11 January 2014, APOEL drew their second league game in a row as they were held 1–1 by AEK Larnaca at GSZ Stadium and dropped to the 4th place, six points behind leaders AEL Limassol. Joan Tomás scored from the rebound after his penalty was saved by Urko Pardo in the 29th minute and two minutes later Constantinos Charalambides equalised for APOEL with a close-range effort, after Mário Sérgio's pass. On 19 January 2014, APOEL beat Nea Salamina 3–1 at home, in a match which was played behind closed doors. Gustavo Manduca opened the scoring with a direct free kick in the 29th minute and six minutes later César Santin scored his first official goal for APOEL to make it 2–0. Selim Benachour scored again for APOEL three minutes after the interval, while Hélio Roque just pulled one goal back for Nea Salamina in the 63rd minute. On 25 January 2014, APOEL came back from one down to beat Aris Limassol 3–1 at Tsirion Stadium. Mihai Dina gave Aris Limassol the lead in the 21st minute, but APOEL turned the match with a goal from Gustavo Manduca in the 43rd minute and an own goal from Maximiliano Oliva one minute later, before Vinícius score a third goal for APOEL in the 73rd minute. On 1 February 2014, APOEL ended Ermis Aradippou's 17-match unbeaten run with 3–0 win at GSP Stadium. Efstathios Aloneftis opened the scoring in the 35th minute and Tomás De Vincenti scored his first two official goals for APOEL in the 55th and 60th minute to make the final score 3–0. On 5 February 2014, APOEL continued their impressive form with a well deserved 2–1 win over Anorthosis at Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium and coupled with the unexpected draw of leaders AEL Limassol closed the gap at the top to four points. Tomás De Vincenti gave APOEL the lead in the 18th minute from the penalty spot and Roberto Colautti managed to equalise for Anorthosis in the 76th minute, but five minutes later Cillian Sheridan scored from close range to give his team an important win. On 9 February 2014, APOEL achieved an important 2–1 victory over Apollon Limassol at home and climbed up to second place. Gastón Sangoy gave Apollon the lead after just 11 minutes, but Tomás De Vincenti struck twice in the second half, first with a penalty in the 67th minute and seven minutes with an amazing shot from an incredibly difficult angle. On 15 February 2014, APOEL achieved an easy 3–1 win over last-placed Alki Larnaca at GSZ Stadium. Nuno Morais put APOEL ahead after 20 minutes, while Kaká and César Santin scored in the second half to make it 3–0, before Demetris Kyprianou score Alki's only goal five minutes before the end. On 22 February 2014, APOEL trashed Doxa Katokopias 5–1 at home and closed the gap at the top to one point only. Efstathios Aloneftis notched a hat-trick and Brazilian forward Gustavo Manduca scored the other two, while Doxa's consolation goal came from a powerful 40-yard shot from Nilson Antonio. On 9 March 2014, APOEL continued their impressive form with a 6–1 thrashing of AEK Kouklia at Pafiako Stadium. Within 25 minutes the game was all but over as a brace from Tomás De Vincenti, a Gustavo Manduca penalty and a red card for AEK Kouklia's Pantelis Pitsillos gave APOEL a 3–0 lead. AEK Kouklia managed to reduce the deficit through Alexandros Garpozis before the break but APOEL proved too strong as Nektarios Alexandrou and substitute César Santin with a couple completed the rout. On 15 March 2014, APOEL extended their winning streak to nine games with a 2–0 win over Ethnikos Achna at GSP Stadium. Gustavo Manduca opened the scoring with a direct free kick in the 17th minute and nine minutes later César Santin scored from close range after Nektarios Alexandrou's cross to make it 2–0 for APOEL. On 19 March 2014, APOEL were held to a goalless draw by Omonia at GSP Stadium and dropped to the third place, three points behind leaders AEL Limassol.

Play-offs

On 23 March 2014, in its first Championship play-off match, APOEL maintained the pressure on AEL Limassol with a slender 2–1 win over Ermis Aradippou at Ammochostos Stadium. Tomás De Vincenti opened the score when he converted a 42nd minute penalty and Efstathios Aloneftis headed in the second two minutes from the end, after an excellent cross by César Santin. An own goal from Kaká in the added time ensured a nervy finish for APOEL, which climbed up to second place, three points off the top. On 29 March 2014, in one of their best performances this season, APOEL thrashed Apollon Limassol 3–0 at GSP Stadium. Gustavo Manduca opened the score midway through the first half, while Cillian Sheridan doubled the score with a superb solo effort before Vinícius finish off a great APOEL move in the last minute. On 5 April 2014, APOEL were held to a goalless draw by Omonia at GSP Stadium and remained three points behind leaders AEL Limassol, which they also drew against Apollon. On 13 April 2014, APOEL got hard-earned 1–0 win over Anorthosis at Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium, breaking the deadlock through Vinícius in the 73rd minute. On 22 April 2014, APOEL thrashed AEL Limassol 3–0 at GSP Stadium and climbed to the top of the league table, level on points with AEL. APOEL got off to a great start when Efstathios Aloneftis crossed the ball and Nuno Morais headed past AEL keeper Karim Fegrouche in the fifth minute. Four minutes before half time Tiago Gomes released Constantinos Charalambides on the right side and his cross was headed past Fegrouche by César Santin. The icing on the cake came late on in the game when APOEL’s midfielder Nuno Morais ran clear and set Gustavo Manduca up for an easy third goal. On 26 April 2014, APOEL’s 23-match unbeaten run ended by Ermis Aradippou which won 2–1 at GSP Stadium and forced APOEL to their first home defeat of the season. Marco Tagbajumi gave Ermis the lead early in the second half, with APOEL unable to break down a resolute Ermis rearguard until the 80th minute when defender Marios Antoniades equalised from close range, but five minutes from time Dragan Žarković netted the winner. On 3 May 2014, APOEL were beaten 1–2 at Tsirion Stadium by Apollon Limassol and remained to the second place, six points off the top. Despite taking an early lead through Nuno Morais and seemingly in control of the game, APOEL collapsed for a second consecutive game and conceded two goals in each half by Apollon's striker Abraham Gneki Guié. On 7 May 2014, APOEL managed to defeat their bitter rivals Omonia 2–1 at home and closed the gap at the top to three points, taking advantage of AEL Limassol's 0–1 defeat by Apollon. Tomás De Vincenti opened the scoring for APOEL with a direct free kick in the 23rd minute, but fifteen minutes later Alípio equalised with the same way. The winning goal came from Aldo Adorno in the 76th minute, two minutes after he had come on as a substitute. On 11 May 2014, APOEL trashed Anorthosis 8–1 at home and after AEL's win the champion would be decided on the last day. Brazilian defender Kaká opened the score in the fifth minute and when Anorthosis defender Demetris Economou was sent off for tripping Irish forward Cillian Sheridan in the penalty area it was all over. Tomás De Vincenti grabbed a hat-trick, Kaká a brace with João Guilherme, Cillian Sheridan and Mário Sérgio also getting on the scoreboard, while Nuno Morais put the ball into his own net to score Anorthosis' only goal. On 17 May 2014, AEL Limassol hosted APOEL at Tsirion Stadium in the title decider match of the First Division. Unfortunately, the referee suspended the match just six minutes into the second half (when the score was still at 0–0), when firecrackers thrown by AEL fans, hit and injured APOEL's Brazilian defender Kaká, who was put on stretchers and rushed to hospital.^[7] After Cyprus Football Association's decision the match was replayed on 31 May 2014, behind closed doors at the neutral Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium. APOEL, who needed to win their league-deciding replay in order to pip AEL's charges on head-to-head record, scored through Cillian Sheridan on the brink of half-time and won their second consecutive league title, in one of the most hotly contested championships in recent years.^[8] Simultaneously, APOEL completed a historical domestic treble, winning all the season's titles in Cyprus, the League, the Cup and the Super Cup. However, on 6 June 2014, the Cyprus Football Association’s (CFA) disciplinary committee – acting as an appeals board – unanimously cancelled on the CFA council’s decision to repeat the May 17 championship final between AEL and APOEL, awarding the match to APOEL with a 0–3 score.^[9]

Cypriot Cup

First round

In the first round of the Cypriot Cup, APOEL were drawn to play a single knock-out match against Cypriot B2 Division side Digenis Oroklinis. The match was held on 19 December 2013, and APOEL needed extra time to beat Digenis Oroklinis 4–2 on the artificial turf of the Oroklini Municipal Stadium. Marios Elia opened the scoring in the 15th minute with a penalty kick and Andreas Parpas equalised for Digenis with a direct free kick in the 50th minute. Two minutes later, Cillian Sheridan put APOEL in front but Pantelis Tavrou equaliser in the 74th minute took the match to extra time. During the extra 30 minutes, APOEL were better side and struck twice with a header from Cillian Sheridan in the 104th minute and with a penalty kick from Gustavo Manduca seven minutes before the end.

Second round

APOEL were drawn to face AEL Limassol in a two-leg match-up for the second round of the Cypriot Cup. On 8 January 2014, in the first leg of their Cypriot Cup second round clash, APOEL secured a narrow 1–0 advantage over AEL Limassol at GSP Stadium after Irish striker Cillian Sheridan scored from close range in the 40th minute.

On 22 January 2014, APOEL recorded another 1–0 win over AEL Limassol at Tsirion Stadium for an aggregate 2–0 victory over last season’s beaten finalists in the second round of the Cypriot Cup. Gustavo Manduca scored the only goal of the game in the 64th minute, converting Tomás De Vincenti's cross, to secure APOEL's progression into the quarter-finals for the first time since the 2009–10 season, also getting revenge over AEL Limassol who knocked them out at this stage of the competition in the last two seasons.

Quarter-finals

APOEL were drawn to face Alki Larnaca in a two-leg match-up for the quarter-finals of the Cypriot Cup. In the first-leg match which was held on 12 February 2014, Giorgos Donis decided to rest many first-team players and as a result APOEL were held to a goalless draw by Alki at GSZ Stadium.

On 19 February 2014, APOEL easily beat Alki Larnaca 3–0 at GSP Stadium and qualified for the Cypriot Cup semi-finals for the first time in four years. After a goalless first half, APOEL made the breakthrough in the 46th minute with a goal from Constantinos Charalambides. Twenty minutes later, Gustavo Manduca scored another one for APOEL, while Constantinos Charalambides struck again with a beautiful long shot sixteen minutes before the end.

Semi-finals

APOEL were drawn to face Doxa Katokopias in a two-leg match-up for the semi-finals of the Cypriot Cup. On 2 April 2014, in first leg semi-final tie, APOEL all but booked their place in the final with a resounding 4–1 home win over Doxa Katokopias. Nektarios Alexandrou opened the scoring with a close range effort in the 20th minute, but Doxa equalised in the 62nd minute after Diogo Ramos headed the ball past APOEL's keeper. Marcelo Oliveira fired APOEL back into the lead a couple of minutes later and then Constantinos Charalambides bagged a brace to give APOEL a 4–1 win that would be enough to send them into the Cup final.

On 9 April 2014, despite fielding a team based only on reserve players, APOEL easily beat Doxa Katokopias 4–0 at Makario Stadium and reached the Cup final, with Christos Pipinis, a brace from Aldo Adorno and César Santin getting the goals.

Final

On 21 May 2014, APOEL won their 20th Cypriot Cup following a comfortable 2–0 win over Ermis Aradippou at GSP Stadium.^[10][11] The club had not won the trophy since the 2007–08 season but the first half goals from Tomás De Vincenti and Cillian Sheridan ensured that the cup would be going back to APOEL after a six-year absence.

It did not take long for Giorgos Donis’ side to get the breakthrough. After some patient build-up play from APOEL, Tomás De Vincenti was played through and the Argentine showed great composure to give his side the lead after just six minutes. APOEL continued to dominate the game and on 28 minutes they doubled their lead. Tomás De Vincenti was involved again, laying the ball off to Tiago Gomes who shook off pressure from Ermis defence before playing the ball across goal with Cillian Sheridan on hand for an easy finish to give APOEL a significant lead. Ermis put up a good fight but were ultimately outplayed by a team with far more experience in the big matches.

UEFA Champions League

Third qualifying round

The team won the Cypriot league last season and as such entered the third qualifying round of the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League. APOEL were drawn against Slovenian side NK Maribor. In the first leg, APOEL drew 1–1 with Maribor at GSP Stadium. APOEL took the lead in the 21st minute, when Nuno Morais found Esmaël Gonçalves in the penalty area and the Portuguese striker took the ball on his chest, turned quickly and rifled the ball home past Jasmin Handanovič in Maribor's goal. Maribor equalised in the 64th minute, after Marcos Tavares managed to connect with Mitja Viler's cross, beating Urko Pardo in goal. In the second leg, APOEL took the initiative from the first whistle and maintained a 60% ball possession at Ljudski vrt, but they only managed a goalless draw against Maribor and eliminated on away goals rule after a 1–1 aggregate score.

UEFA Europa League

Play-off round

After being eliminated from the UEFA Champions League, APOEL dropped down into the UEFA Europa League play-off round, and drawn against Belgian side Zulte Waregem. The first leg was held at the Constant Vanden Stock Stadium in Brussels and ended in a 1–1 draw. Zulte Waregem took the lead midway into the first half when Thorgan Hazard and assisted defender Junior Malanda to beat Urko Pardo in APOEL's goal. Nektarios Alexandrou lofted the ball over the keeper to score the equaliser in the 88th minute, after receiving a long pass from APOEL's goalkeeper Urko Pardo. In the second leg, APOEL lost 1–2 at GSP Stadium. Zulte Waregem broke the deadlock after only 12 minutes when Habib Habibou slotted the ball home. Seven minutes into the second half, João Guilherme made a low cross across the goal and Efstathios Aloneftis used his quickness to get ahead of his marker and tap the ball in from the close range to equalise for APOEL. When it looked that the game was destined to go into the extra time Franck Berrier made a run down the right flank and crossed the ball into the area where Jens Naessens managed to connect and beat Urko Pardo in APOEL's goal. Belgians went through 3–2 on aggregate.

Group stage

Despite losing to Zulte Waregem in the play-off round, APOEL reinstated in Europa League replacing the Turkish side Fenerbahçe who were banned because of the match-fixing case related to the 2010–11 Süper Lig title.^[14] APOEL were selected by a random drawing among all the losing teams from the play-off round.^[15] APOEL drawn in Group F, alongside Bordeaux, Eintracht Frankfurt and Maccabi Tel Aviv.

APOEL began their group stage adventure with a goalless draw at Bloomfield Stadium against Maccabi Tel Aviv on 19 September 2013. Urko Pardo was the hero of the night after saving Barak Itzhaki's 95th-minute penalty, helping APOEL to escape the Israeli city with an important and hard-earned point. On 3 October 2013, APOEL were beaten 0–3 at GSP Stadium by German side Eintracht Frankfurt in their second group stage match. APOEL skipper Nektarios Alexandrou scored an own goal to open proceedings in the 27th minute, while Srđan Lakić and Sebastian Jung added a goal apiece in the second half to seal the win. A day after the home defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt, the club announced the termination of Paulo Sérgio's contract, due to a disappointing run of results domestically and abroad.^[1][2] On 24 October 2013, in their third group stage match, APOEL were stunned by a last-minute Bordeaux winner, as they went down to a 2–1 defeat at Stade Chaban-Delmas in France. Bordeaux broke the deadlock in the 22nd minute when Ludovic Sané rose at the far post to glance in Grégory Sertic's corner from the right. APOEL managed to score an equaliser in the last minute of the first half, when Efstathios Aloneftis ran down the left flank and delivered a great ball for Esmaël Gonçalves to turn in at the far post. Unfortunately, Brazilian defender Henrique set up the final score when he headed home Diego Rolán's free kick right in the last minute of the match and APOEL found themselves bottom of Group F with only one point from three matches. On 7 November 2013, APOEL defeated French side Bordeaux 2–1 at Nicosia’s GSP Stadium for the fourth matchday of the competition and secured its first ever victory in the UEFA Europa League group stages. Nektarios Alexandrou unleashed a devastating blow from distance after 13 minutes, meeting Mário Sérgio's tapped free-kick with a thunderous effort that clipped the post on the way in. Bordeaux reacted well, levelling through Ludovic Sané just before the interval, and the game was blown wide open soon after the restart when Mario Budimir and Landry N'Guémo were sent off after tangling in the 50th minute. Nuno Morais made it 2–1 in the 55th minute, and APOEL thereafter kept up the pressure, but Cédric Carrasso made some brilliant saves to save his team from embarrassment. So, APOEL climbed to third place in Group F with four points, three points behind Maccabi Tel Aviv and five points behind leaders Eintracht Frankfurt, while Bordeaux were rock bottom with three points overall. On 28 November 2013, APOEL were held to a goalless draw by Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv in the fifth round of Europa’s Group F at GSP Stadium and remained in third place with five points, three points behind second-placed Maccabi Tel Aviv. APOEL’s Europa League adventure was concluded at Commerzbank-Arena with a 2–0 loss to Group F winners Eintracht Frankfurt on 12 December 2013. They needed a win to have any chance of progress, but after the interval Stephan Schröck and Constant Djakpa struck to end APOEL’s international hopes for the rest of the season. Eintracht completed the group stage of the competition on top of the Group F standings with 15 points, Maccabi Tel Aviv ended second with 11 points, APOEL ended in third place with five points, while Bordeaux were at the bottom with just three points.

Current squad

Last Update: 29 January 2014^[16]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 3 DF João Guilherme 4 MF Kostakis Artymatas 6 DF Marcelo Oliveira 8 MF Tiago Gomes 9 FW Cillian Sheridan 10 MF Constantinos Charalambides (vice-captain) 11 MF Nektarios Alexandrou 12 FW Aldo Adorno 14 DF Christos Pipinis 15 DF Marios Antoniades 16 MF Vinícius 17 MF Marinos Satsias (captain) 18 MF Selim Benachour 19 DF Marios Elia 20 FW Pieros Sotiriou

No. Position Player 21 MF Gustavo Manduca 22 GK Dionisis Chiotis 26 MF Nuno Morais 27 DF Aritz Borda 28 DF Mário Sérgio 30 MF Tomás De Vincenti (on loan from Olympiacos) 31 MF Vasilios Papafotis 46 FW Efstathios Aloneftis 70 FW César Santin 73 DF Kaká 77 MF Athos Solomou 78 GK Urko Pardo 88 GK Tasos Kissas 95 MF Christos Djamas 96 GK Konstantinos Vasilevski

For recent transfers, see List of Cypriot football transfers summer 2013.
Also, see List of Cypriot football transfers winter 2013–14.

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player MF Emilios Panayiotou (at Alki Larnaca) DF Andreas Christofides (at Alki Larnaca) MF Markos Charalambous (at Olympiakos Nicosia)

International players

Nektarios Alexandrou Efstathios Aloneftis Marios Antoniades Kostakis Artymatas Constantinos Charalambides Tasos Kissas Athos Solomou Pieros Sotiriou

Kostakis Artymatas (U-21) Pieros Sotiriou (U-21) Christos Djamas (U-21 & U-19) Vasilios Papafotis (U-19)

Foreign players

EU Nationals Dionisis Chiotis Christos Pipinis Nuno Morais Mário Sérgio Tiago Gomes Cillian Sheridan Aritz Borda Urko Pardo

EU Nationals (Dual citizenship) Gustavo Manduca Aldo Adorno Selim Benachour Tomás De Vincenti

Non-EU Nationals Marcelo Oliveira João Guilherme Vinícius César Santin Kaká

Squad Changes

In:

N	P	Nat.	Name	Age	EU	Moving from	Type	Transfer window	Ends	Transfer fee	Ref.
—	CM		Panayiotou	20	EU	Olympiakos Nicosia !Olympiakos Nicosia	Loan Return	Summer	2014	—	—
20	CF		Sotiriou	20	EU	Olympiakos Nicosia !Olympiakos Nicosia	Transfer Y	Summer	2017	€70K	apoelfc.com.cy
3	CB		Guilherme	27	Non-EU	Marítimo !Marítimo	Transfer Y	Summer	2015	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
8	CM		Gomes	27	EU	Blackpool !Blackpool	Transfer Y	Summer	2015	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
4	DM		Artymatas	20	EU	Enosis Neon Paralimni !Enosis Neon Paralimni	Transfer Y	Summer	2017	€120K	apoelfc.com.cy
25	LB		Christian	24	Non-EU	Grêmio Anápolis	Loan	Summer	2014	Undisclosed	apoelfc.com.cy
9	CF		Sheridan	24	EU	Kilmarnock !Kilmarnock	Transfer Y	Summer	2014	Undisclosed	apoelfc.com.cy
23	CF		Gonçalves	22	EU	Rio Ave !Rio Ave	Loan	Summer	2014	Undisclosed	apoelfc.com.cy
16	CM		Vinícius	27	Non-EU	Braga !Braga	Transfer Y	Summer	2015	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
55	LB		Cabral	29	EU	Académica !Académica	Transfer Y	Summer	2014	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
70	CF		Santin	32	Non-EU	Copenhagen !Copenhagen	Transfer Y	Winter	2015	€50K	apoelfc.com.cy
14	LB		Pipinis	29	EU	Asteras Tripoli !Asteras Tripoli	Transfer Y	Winter	2015	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
30	AM		De Vincenti	24	EU	Olympiacos !Olympiacos	Loan	Winter	2014	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
73	CB		Kaká	32	Non-EU	Deportivo La Coruña !Deportivo La Coruña	Transfer Y	Winter	2015	Free	apoelfc.com.cy

Total expenditure: €240K

Out:

N	P	Nat.	Name	Age	EU	Moving to	Type	Transfer window	Transfer fee	Source
—	CB		Christofides	20	EU	Alki Larnaca !Alki Larnaca	Loan	Summer	Free	kerkida.net
—	CM		Panayiotou	20	EU	Alki Larnaca !Alki Larnaca	Loan	Summer	Free	24sports.com.cy
16	CF		Biton	25	Non-EU	Standard Liège !Standard Liège	Loan return	Summer	—	sigmalive.com
20	DM		Tziolis	28	EU	Monaco !Monaco	Loan return	Summer	—	sigmalive.com
1	GK		Constantinou	27	EU	Aris Limassol !Aris Limassol	End of contract N	Summer	Free	kerkida.net
23	CM		Pinto	29	EU	Legia Warsaw !Legia Warsaw	End of contract N	Summer	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
55	CB		Karipidis	30	EU	Apollon Limassol !Apollon Limassol	Mutual consent N	Summer	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
55	RW		Beckmann	29	EU	IF Elfsborg !IF Elfsborg	Mutual consent N	Summer	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
30	CB		Zuela	29	EU	Apollon Smyrni !Apollon Smyrni	Mutual consent N	Summer	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
5	LB		Klukowski	32	EU	Free agent !Free agent	Contract termination N	Summer	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
40	AM		Charalambous	20	EU	Olympiakos Nicosia !Olympiakos Nicosia	Loan	Summer	Free	sentragoal.com.cy
23	CF		Gonçalves	22	EU	Rio Ave !Rio Ave	Mutual consent N Loan return	Winter	—	apoelfc.com.cy
7	CF		Budimir	27	EU	Panetolikos !Panetolikos	Mutual consent N	Winter	Free	apoelfc.com.cy
25	LB		Christian	25	Non-EU	Grêmio Anápolis	Mutual consent N Loan return	Winter	—	apoelfc.com.cy
55	LB		Cabral	29	EU	Free agent !Free agent	Mutual consent N	Winter	Free	apoelfc.com.cy

Total income: €0

Last updated: 29 January 2014

Club

Other information

Chairman	Phivos Erotokritou (Until 4 December 2013) Prodromos Petrides (From 4 December 2013)
Ground (capacity and dimensions)	GSP Stadium (22,859 / 105x68 m)

Source: apoelfc.com.cy

Squad stats

				Total						Cypriot First Division					Cypriot Cup					LTV Super Cup					Champions League & Europa League
Country	N	P	Name	GS	A	Mins.	Gls.	Y	R	A	Mins.	Gls.	Y	R	A	Mins.	Gls.	Y	R	A	Mins.	Gls.	Y	R	A	Mins.	Gls.	Y	R
	3	CB	Guilherme	40	41	3640	3	12		28	2440	3	8		4	390		1		1	90		1		8	720		2
	4	DM	Artymatas	9	15	776		2		9	362		1		5	324		1							1	90
	6	CB	Oliveira	45	46	4052	2	17		31	2702	1	11		5	450	1	1		1	90				9	810		5
	7	CF	Budimir	4	13	482	2	2	1	6	233	2	1		1	120				1	1				5	128		1	1
	8	CM	Gomes	18	27	1701		1		15	912		1		4	306				1	83				7	400
	9	CF	Sheridan	21	39	2067	9	1		26	1180	5	1		7	517	4			1	90				5	280
	10	RM	Charalambides	37	48	3220	7	4		32	2189	3	1		7	505	4	1							9	526		2
	11	LM	Alexandrou	23	39	2183	4	4		22	1302	1	2		7	356	1	1		1	23				9	502	2	1
	12	RW	Adorno		5	144	3			4	111	1			1	33	2
	14	LB	Pipinis	12	14	867	1	4	1	10	536		3	1	4	331	1	1
	15	LB	Antoniades	19	19	1484	1	6		16	1270	1	4		2	150		2							1	64
	16	CM	Vinícius	43	48	3632	5	9		32	2590	5	7		7	460				1	7				8	575		2
	17	DM	Satsias	1	5	107				4	17				1	90
	18	AM	Benachour	15	28	1474	1	2		19	943	1	1		3	271				1	89				5	171		1
	19	RB	Elia	2	3	239	1	1		1	29				2	210	1	1
	20	CF	Sotiriou	3	9	382		1		5	211														4	171		1
	21	LW	Manduca	33	42	2770	16	6		29	2024	13	3		6	304	3	1		1	90				6	352		2
	22	GK	Chiotis	10	10	900	-4	1		2	180	-1			7	630	-1	1							1	90	-2
	23	CF	Gonçalves	13	17	1173	5	2	1	10	655	3								1	67				6	451	2	2	1
	25	LB	Christian	11	13	1007		3		4	276		1		1	80		1		1	90				7	561		1
	26	DM	Morais	49	52	4387	6	8		34	2925	5	6		7	517		1		1	90				10	855	1	1
	27	CB	Borda	17	20	1506		4	1	11	752		3	1	4	304									5	450		1
	28	RB	Mário Sérgio	49	49	4381	3	6		35	3121	2	5		4	360				1	90	1	1		9	810
	30	AM	De Vincenti	18	20	1399	13	6		16	1105	12	6		4	294	1
	31	RM	Papafotis		3	98				2	39				1	59
	46	LW	Aloneftis	34	42	3076	9	3		30	2262	8	2		3	185		1							9	629	1
	55	LB	Cabral	10	11	864		1		7	590		1												4	274
	70	CF	Santin	8	24	1078	7	1		20	921	6	1		4	157	1
	73	CB	Kaká	9	10	816	3			6	456	3			4	360
	77	RB	Solomou	7	12	699		2		4	195		1		5	367									3	137		1
	78	GK	Pardo	44	44	3960	-34	2		34	3060	-24	1							1	90				9	810	-10	1
	88	GK	Kissas	1	1	120	-2								1	120	-2
	95	DM	Djamas
	96	GK	Vasilevski

Last updated: 31 May 2014
Source: Match reports in competitive matches, apoelfc.com.cy
Ordered by start team, game starts and position on pitch (from back right to front left)
0 shown as blank
Country: when 2 flags, 1st flag = country that plays for internationally, 2nd flag = country of birth; N = number on jersey; P = Position; Name = Name on jersey (for more extended name, pause the mouse pointer on the name); GS = Game Started; A = Appearances.

Top scorers

R	Player	Position	League	Cup	Super Cup	Europe1	Total
1	Manduca	LW	13	3	0	0	16
2	De Vincenti	AM	12	1	0	0	13
3	Aloneftis	LW	8	0	0	1	9
	Sheridan	CF	5	4	0	0	9
5	Santin	CF	6	1	0	0	7
	Charalambides	RM	3	4	0	0	7
7	Morais	DM	5	0	0	1	6
8	Vinícius	CM	5	0	0	0	5
	Gonçalves	CF	3	0	0	2	5
10	Alexandrou	LM	1	1	0	2	4
11	Kaká	CB	3	0	0	0	3
	Guilherme	CB	3	0	0	0	3
	Mário Sérgio	RB	2	0	1	0	3
	Adorno	RW	1	2	0	0	3
15	Budimir	CF	2	0	0	0	2
	Oliveira	CB	1	1	0	0	2
17	Benachour	AM	1	0	0	0	1
	Antoniades	LB	1	0	0	0	1
	Pipinis	LB	0	1	0	0	1
	Elia	RB	0	1	0	0	1
Own goals			3	0	0	0	3
TOTAL			78	19	1	6	104

Last updated: 31 May 2014
¹Included both UEFA Champions League and Europa League competitions.
Source: Match reports in Competitive matches, apoelfc.com.cy

Captains

1. Marinos Satsias
2. Constantinos Charalambides
3. Nektarios Alexandrou
4. Nuno Morais

Pre-season friendlies

Mid-season friendlies

Competitions

Overall

Competition	Started round	Final position / round	First match	Last match
Cypriot First Division	—	Winners	2 September 2013	31 May 2014
UEFA Champions League	Third qualifying round	Third qualifying round	31 July 2013	6 August 2013
UEFA Europa League	Play-off round	Group stage	22 August 2013	12 December 2013
Cypriot Cup	1st round	Winners	19 December 2013	21 May 2014
LTV Super Cup	Final	Winners	17 August 2013

Last updated: 31 May 2014
Source: Competitions

Cypriot First Division

Classification

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation	Head-to-head
1	AEL Limassol !AEL Limassol	26	19	5	2	48	16	+32	62	Qualification for Championship group
2	Apollon Limassol !Apollon Limassol	26	19	2	5	47	19	+28	59		APOL 2–0 APOE APOE 2–1 APOL
3	APOEL !APOEL	26	18	5	3	56	18	+38	59
4	Ermis Aradippou !Ermis Aradippou	26	15	7	4	44	28	+16	52
5	Omonia Nicosia !Omonia Nicosia	26	13	8	5	45	22	+23	47
6	Anorthosis Famagusta !Anorthosis Famagusta	26	11	5	10	46	36	+10	38

Updated to games played on 19 March 2014.
Source: CFA, UEFA
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head goals scored; 5) goal difference; 6) number of goals scored
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.
Head-to-Head: used when head-to-head record is used to rank tied teams.

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
36	25	6	5	78	25	+53	81	15	2	1	50	10	+40	10	4	4	28	15	+13

Last updated: 31 May 2014.
Source: UEFA

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36
Ground	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	H	A
Result	W	L	D	W	W	L	W	L	W	D	W	W	W	W	D	D	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	D	W	W	D	W	W	L	L	W	W	W
Position	1	6	6	5	5	7	6	6	6	6	6	6	4	3	4	4	4	4	3	3	2	2	2	2	2	3	2	2	2	2	1	2	2	2	2	1

Last updated: 31 May 2014.
Source: apoelfc.com.cy
Ground: A = Away; H = Home. Result: D = Draw; L = Loss; W = Win; P = Postponed.

Play-offs Table

The first 12 teams are divided into two groups. Points are carried over from the regular season.

Championship group

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation	Head-to-head
1	APOEL !APOEL (C)	36	25	6	5	80	25	+55	81	2014–15 UEFA Champions League Third qualifying round	APOEL 3–0 AEL, APOEL 2–2 AEL AEL 0–3 APOEL, AEL 2–1 APOEL
2	AEL Limassol !AEL Limassol	36	25	6	5	68	29	+39	81
3	Apollon Limassol !Apollon Limassol	36	24	5	7	66	29	+37	77	2014–15 UEFA Europa League play-off round 1
4	Ermis Aradippou !Ermis Aradippou	36	18	8	10	55	54	+1	62	2014–15 UEFA Europa League Third qualifying round 1
5	Omonia Nicosia !Omonia Nicosia	36	16	11	9	59	37	+22	59	2014–15 UEFA Europa League Second qualifying round 1
6	Anorthosis Famagusta !Anorthosis Famagusta	36	12	6	18	57	64	−7	42

Updated to games played on 31 May 2014.
Source: CFA, UEFA
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head goals scored; 5) goal difference; 6) number of goals scored
¹Since cup winners APOEL qualified for the 2014-15 UEFA Champions League and the runners-up Ermis finished top-four, all of the Europa League spots revert into league positions.
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.
Head-to-Head: used when head-to-head record is used to rank tied teams.

Matches

Kick-off times are in EET.

Regular season

Play-offs

UEFA Champions League

Qualifying phase

Third qualifying round

UEFA Europa League

Qualifying phase

Play-off round

Group stage

Note: Despite losing to Zulte Waregem in the play-off round, APOEL reinstated in Europa League replacing the Turkish side Fenerbahçe who were banned because of the match-fixing case related to the 2010–11 Süper Lig title.^[14] APOEL were selected by a random drawing among all the losing teams from the play-off round.^[15]

Group F standings and fixtures

Key to colours in group tables
Group winners and runners-up advance to the round of 32

Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Eintracht Frankfurt 6 5 0 1 13 4 +9 15 Maccabi Tel Aviv 6 3 2 1 7 5 +2 11 APOEL 6 1 2 3 3 8 −5 5 Bordeaux 6 1 0 5 4 10 −6 3

APO BOR EIN MAC APOEL — 2–1 0–3 0–0 Bordeaux 2–1 — 0–1 1–2 Eintracht Frankfurt 2–0 3–0 — 2–0 Maccabi Tel Aviv 0–0 1–0 4–2 —

Matches

LTV Super Cup

APOEL won the 2013 Cypriot Super Cup (13th title).

Cypriot Cup

First round

Second round

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

APOEL won the 2013–14 Cypriot Cup (20th title).

Notes

1. ↑ The 17th May 2014 match was abandoned (at 0–0) after 52 minutes, when firecrackers thrown by AEL fans, hit and injured APOEL's player Kaká.^[7] The match was replayed behind closed doors at a neutral stadium on 31 May 2014 and APOEL achieved to win their second consecutive league title after beating AEL Limassol by 1–0.^[8] However, on 6 June 2014, the Cyprus Football Association’s (CFA) disciplinary committee – acting as an appeals board – unanimously cancelled on the CFA council’s decision to repeat the May 17 championship final, awarding APOEL a 3–0 win.^[9]

References