NICOSIA – Omonia have all but booked their place in the semifinals of the Cyprus Coca-Cola Cup after thrashing league leaders Anorthosis 4-0 in their first leg tie on Wednesday.
Omonia’s win will do much to restore confidence and morale in the team that has been hampered all season by inconsistency on the pitch and financial woes off the pitch.
Anorthosis suffered their first domestic defeat of the season last weekend when they were downed 2-1 by relegation battlers Nea Salamina and coach Ronny Levy’s hopes for a positive response came crashing down on top of him as Omonia, who are currently fifth in the league, went on a four-goal rampage.
The game would have made interesting viewing for second place APOEL and their coach Ivan Jovanovic as they trail Anorthosis by just three points in the league.
George Efrem got the ball rolling for Toni Savevski’s Cup holders after he picked up an assist from Andre Alves and Nuno Asis doubled the advantage on the hour after some good work on the win by Demetris Christofi.
Freddy made it three for Omonia on 90 minutes with the Angolan striker celebrating his goal by donning on a mask of Shrek and their was still time for Maltese international Andre Schembri to score a fourth and cap off a miserable evening for Anorthosis.
The game was marred by clashes between police and fans of Anorthosis – who also lit off flares - and referee Demetris Chrysostomou twice brought play to a halt.
Anorthosis boss Levy was also showered with objects from the terraces during the game.
The final whistle arrived on the 103rd minute to rapturous cheers from the home fans with the final score making the second leg on March 6 a mere formality.
The other Cup games - Ayia Napa-Apollon, Enosis-AEK and AEP-AEL – will take place later this month.