PAOK suffered their first home defeat in any competition this season, falling 2-1 to Celta Vigo in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League play-off tie.
The two sides finished close together in the league phase, with Celta narrowly ahead in 16th place and having already beaten PAOK 3-1 back in October.
Celta started strongly in Thessaloniki, with captain Iago Aspas creating early chances.
A slick through-ball found Williot Swedberg, but the midfielder was twice denied from close range by PAOK goalkeeper Antonis Tsiftsis.
Oscar Mingueza also tested PAOK’s defense, but his angled strike went well over the bar.
The Spanish side finally broke the deadlock shortly after the half-hour mark. PAOK defender Dejan Lovren’s clearance fell to Celta right-back Javi Rodriguez, who redirected it to Miguel Roman. Roman’s inventive flick over Magomed Ozdoyev set up Aspas to calmly finish.
Celta doubled their advantage nine minutes later with Roman once again orchestrating the play.
His clipped pass found Swedberg, who laid it off for Aspas to glide into the box and convert the cross.
Sergio Carreira was denied a third goal by an offside flag just before half-time, but Celta were undoubtedly pleased with their first-half performance.
Without suspended top scorer Giorgos Giakoumakis, PAOK struggled to create clear chances after the break.
Their first shot on target came around the hour mark, as Alexander Jeremejeff forced Celta goalkeeper Ionut Radu into a save. Substitute Ferran Jutgla also thought he had scored, only to be ruled offside.
Jeremejeff eventually pulled one back with a beautifully struck volley, giving PAOK hope and setting up a tense finale at Toumba Stadium.
Despite late pressure, Celta held on to end a five-game winless streak across all competitions (three draws, two losses), heading into the second leg in Galicia with momentum.
PAOK, by contrast, have won just one of their past four matches and failed to score in two, highlighting the uphill task they face to overturn the tie next week.
