Our View: Why patience pays

 

LEAGUE champions APOEL gave Cyprus something to be proud about on Tuesday night by qualifying for the group stages of the Champions League, European football’s top competition. The Cyprus champions join the elite clubs of Europe – Barcelona, Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan in today’s draw after winning three qualifying ties.

APOEL overcame the champions of Albania and Slovakia, but the most difficult tie was the last, against Polish champions Wisla Krakow. Trailing 1-0 from the away leg, the Nicosia club put on a confident performance on Tuesday night, outplaying the favourites and winning 3-1.

It was the second time in three years that APOEL qualified for the Champions League group stages, a success that is a testament to the stability and continuity provided by their Serbian coach Ivan Jovanovic. Everyone rightly praised Jovanovic for his achievements, but the APOEL board deserve some credit for giving him the time and backing to put together a formidable team.

Perhaps other Cyprus clubs, inclined to sack the coach after a few disappointing results without giving him a chance to build a team, will now realise the value of patience and keeping faith in a coach. APOEL’s board are reaping the rewards of doing just this.

 

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.