Olympiacos owner Evangelos Marinakis delivers passionate speech after recent league blip, demanding five straight wins to reclaim Greek Super League control
Evangelos Marinakis is never far from the spotlight, but he rarely steps directly into it. This week, however, the Olympiacos owner chose to confront his players face to face after their damaging last two results saw them surrender top spot in the Greek Super League.
A home defeat to arch rivals Panathinaikos – coached by Rafael Benitez, a target of Marinakis for the Nottingham Forest job earlier this season – followed by a 0-0 draw to Levadiakos has left Olympiacos two points behind AEK Athens in the title race. For a club accustomed to dominance, that was enough to trigger a response from the man at the top.
“I came here today to look you in the eye,” Marinakis told the squad in a speech that blended defiance, affection and unmistakable pressure. “Above all else, Olympiacos comes first.”
He admitted he was “saddened” by recent results, reminding the room that for supporters the club is “a way of life.” But rather than apportion blame, Marinakis positioned himself as both shield and motivator.
“I support you, I take full responsibility for everyone, and in the end, we will be champions.”
‘I want five wins’
The central demand was simple and emphatic: five victories from their remaining five matches before the Greek Super League breaks off into a playoff format.
“I want five wins so we can enter the playoffs with a winning mentality,” he said. “You are the best, you have the best coach. Do whatever it takes to win the league.”
Marinakis pointed to their recent European resilience under head coach José Luis Mendilibar, recalling how a poor start in the Champions League was salvaged with dramatic results – including against Ajax – to set up a playoff with Bayer 04 Leverkusen.
Suggested Articles
“That’s how I want you to play in the league,” he insisted. “I don’t want different intensity in Europe and Greece.”
“And I’ll say it again: give it your all. Difficult days came again the year before last, last year, and this year in the Champions League, but last year and the year before last we turned it around, and this year in the Champions League we turned it around again!
“We know how to turn things around and we know that we are winners and champions. When you turned things around against Ajax and Leverkusen, there is no reason why you cannot turn things around against Greek teams in the remaining matches of the Greek Championship.”
In classic Marinakis fashion, the rallying cry was laced with bravado. He declared this the strongest squad in recent years, reeled off star names, and even revealed he had turned down significant transfer offers – including interest from Wolves and Benfica – to strengthen the team in January.
He also took aim at critics, dismissing what he described as “paid trolls” and hostile voices in the media, making clear that internal unity mattered more than outside noise.
“We are family,” he said. “We know how to turn things around. We are winners and champions.”
For a club that has won 23 of the past 30 league titles, slipping into second place is not merely a setback, but an affront to identity. Marinakis’ message was unmistakable: reclaim control immediately, or face the consequences of failing to live up to Olympiacos’ standards.
With the title race tightening and a heavyweight Champions League tie with Ajax looming, the response over the next five games will reveal whether his words inspire, or intensify, the pressure.