Panathinaikos shed 'Greek' tag with cosmopolitan squad spanning 19 nations

Forget the label of Greek side Panathinaikos. The Athens club have earned the moniker cosmopolitan with a squad featuring a staggering 19 different nationalities. This extensive pool of over 40 players will need trimming before the season kicks off.

Beyond the expected Greek contingent, the dressing room buzzes with representation from 18 other nations. In goal, they can call upon the services of Polish 'keeper Dragowski, Frenchman Lafont, and Russian Lodygin. The defensive ranks are bolstered by players from Serbia (Mladenovic), Iceland (Ingason), Croatia (Jedvaj), Algeria (Touba), Germany (Philipp Max), the United States (Palmer-Brown), and Albania (Fikaj).

Midfield boasts further international flavour with Slovenian Cerin, Spaniard Chirivella, and Dutchman Vilhena. The attacking line is equally diverse, featuring Pellistri from Uruguay, Tetê from Brazil, Mancini (Argentina, though Italian-born), Jeremejeff from Sweden, and Miguel Tavares from Portugal.

Panathinaikos lead the way in the Champions League second qualifying round 2025-26 in terms of international representation. Bulgarian side Ludogorets follow with 18, while Icelandic outfit Breidablik have a mere two, with only a pair of Danish players supplementing their predominantly local squad.

However, the Athens club face a tough task to maintain this record, not due to player departures, but due to their precarious position in the Champions League qualifiers. Rangers secured a 2-0 first-leg victory against Rui Vitória's men, who fielded a starting XI comprising seven different nationalities, rising to 9 with substitutions.