It is now April 7, 1999, a long Wednesday at that time,
AEK went with its entire delegation,
by bus to Belgrade to play a friendly football match
………………………………………..
the amazing thing was that Belgrade at that time was a war zone.
………………………………………..
the NATO bombing had started on 24 March and lasted for 11 weeks.
………………………………………..
even though NATO aircraft were using up to
depleted uranium bombs and other weapons prohibited by international treaties
NO ONE dared to stand up to the Americans...
………………………………………..
nor the “civilized” Europeans
nor the like-minded Russians nor anyone else
………………………………………..
against everyone and everything, so a football team
that honours its refugee history,
launched
along with a few personalities from the Greek scene
and went to Belgrade and played a symbolic friendly football match
with Partizan
………………………………………..
one of the people who had accompanied the expedition
was the then 77-year-old Manolis Glezos
………………………………………..
not
that move didn't change much.
………………………………………..
the natoes continued bombing until 10 June.
………………………………………..
not even the verified 1000 civilian dead stopped them
nor the
12,500 injured
including 2,700 children(!!!!)
………………………………………..
although in recent years I have stopped playing professional football
I still say I'm an AEK...
I consider that presence of AEK at that time in Belgrade
the greatest decoration of the
………………………………………..
as Homer writes
the wise Odysseus said:
“War brings much evil and no good...”
