Olympiacos Drop Points To Volos After Nightmare Injury To Ayoub El Kaabi
- Thrylos 7 Intl Team
- 1 hour ago
- 3 min read
The scoreboard says Olympiacos dropped two points. That was not the central story of the night. By the time the final whistle arrived, José Luis Mendilibar had been forced to remove three players through injury, while his most important striker was already undergoing examination at hospital.
Official Super League match data confirms the 1-1 result, with Maximiliano Comba scoring Volos’ equalizer in the 76th minute. Olympiacos had gone ahead through Jota Silva’s penalty following the collision that injured El Kaabi. What happened afterward was revealing.
Mendilibar says the players never recovered psychologically
The coach did not hide behind tactical explanations. After the match, he said the El Kaabi incident had shocked the players and described a dressing room in which everyone was deeply affected. He even said he asked which player wanted to come off after the incident; nobody did, but in his assessment nobody was really mentally in the match either.
That aligns closely with what happened after halftime. Olympiacos became significantly less threatening.
The emotional explanation should not excuse the performance, but it helps explain the abrupt change in rhythm.
A team that had been attempting to control the match suddenly looked like one simply trying to get through it.
The equalizer still came from an avoidable football error
Psychology explains part of the second half. It does not remove the technical responsibility. The equalizing move began with a poor backward pass from Panagiotis Retsos, forcing the goalkeeper into an emergency intervention before Comba eventually converted for Volos.
That is exactly the kind of self-created transition Mendilibar will want eliminated. Against a side that had generated little threat, Olympiacos effectively opened the door themselves. The result therefore contains two separate lessons: the squad was understandably affected by a traumatic incident, but it still failed to manage the remainder of the match professionally enough to preserve the lead.
Both can be true.
Pirola and Roca make the medical situation considerably more important
El Kaabi remains the obvious priority, but this was not a one-injury game. Lorenzo Pirola was also substituted because of a physical problem, with David Carmo replacing him.
Then Joel Roca became the third forced substitution, leaving with significant shoulder discomfort. Reports describe him departing with his arm supported or bandaged. One local report identifies the issue around Roca’s shoulder/scapular area, although there is not yet a formal Olympiacos diagnosis.
For all three players, precise medical conclusions should wait.
Current evidence level
El Kaabi: serious-looking leg injury, hospital examination underway; some reporting mentions fears of a break, but that remains unconfirmed speculation pending tests.
Roca: confirmed forced substitution with a shoulder/upper-body problem; exact diagnosis and timetable unknown.
Pirola: confirmed forced substitution through injury; exact nature and timetable not yet established.
Suddenly the next match matters differently
Olympiacos face Volos again in only a few days, this time in the Greek Cup. Ordinarily that fixture would be about rotation. Now it could become about necessity.
If Pirola, Roca and particularly El Kaabi are unavailable, Mendilibar will have to redistribute minutes rapidly.
For the attack, Armando González suddenly becomes much more important.
For the wings, Bailey’s gradual integration becomes more consequential if Roca misses time. And at center-back, any Pirola absence increases the immediate workload on Carmo, Retsos and the rest of the defensive group.
This is the first genuine test of the depth Olympiacos built over the summer.
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