European Cup First Appearance and David Luiz - The Meteoric Rise of Pafos Football Club

Mediterranean club Pafos FC are set to make their maiden European elite entry this Wednesday – just 11 years following the team’s founding.

Over the past few years, the squad has generated buzz by playing continental football for the initial instance last campaign, reaching the Conference League round of 16 and claiming their first-ever top-flight trophy.

This season, they have achieved yet another huge feat by surviving multiple qualifiers of Champions League preliminaries to reach the group stage – joining only one other clubs, together with Kazakhstan’s club Kairat Almaty, to make their debut.

Israeli side Maccabi, Dynamo Kyiv and Red Star Belgrade were all beaten by Pafos during the preliminary rounds.

What they earned is eight matches in the main round, featuring a fixture on their turf against Munich and an away trip to Stamford Bridge, but they begin with a match in Greece against Piraeus-based club this coming Wednesday.

"Everyone was in ecstasy," said veteran Brazilian and Blues player Luiz, who signed for the club in last month, on the point Pafos made it.

"The entire group was overjoyed because we accomplished something amazing. Nobody predicted us to reach the Champions League this term."

"I’m delighted to be here because I can see this emotion, with everybody's hunger, to accomplish something special."

Established Eleven Years Ago: The Backstory

Pafos were established in eleven years back when two clubs from the district combined – AEK Kouklia and AEP Paphos – who also had been created in a year 2000 union of two other clubs in the district.

They began in the second tier and bounced around the second and elite league until the acquisition in 2017 by a Russian entrepreneur, a Russian businessman with UK passport who was once as Pompey proprietor in 2011.

"The goal was clear – we aimed to establish something fresh, something able to challenge, something viable – not just a soccer side but one that could give back to the community," he commented not long ago.

"The island is a place with an immense affection for soccer and, in Pafos, we felt that we had an chance to build something from the ground up."

Success did not come immediate triumph, however.

"Owners have transformed the team, 100%. It was a club that struggled to stay in the elite league."

"In Mediterranean countries, the emotion is extreme. So, if the club succeeds, everyone will go to the arena. If the team fails, hardly any people will show up. There is nothing in the middle."

"There were some errors, investment that failed to bring them results. They have been spending since 2017. It involved experimentation to arrive at this day today."

British Managers Try Their Hand

Scotland's the former defender, currently Dundee FC gaffer, had a short stint in charge in 2018.

Welshman Cameron Toshack took twenty-one fixtures in that campaign.

English Constantine led the squad for 18 games in three years ago.

Two ex-Blackburn players took charge, too – former Red Devils defender Berg and ex-Real Madrid defender Salgado, who was technical director but also had brief stints as temporary boss.

On the field, former Premier League player Jason Puncheon was at Pafos from 2019 until 2022.

Progress Arrives With Ex-Arsenal Coach

Things changed with the arrival of Spanish Carcedo in June 2023. He had been Unai Emery's assistant manager at multiple clubs, including North London club.

He coached UD Ibiza and Zaragoza before switching to Cyprus.

His debut campaign in charge ended with the club's first-ever honor – the 2023-24 Cyprus Cup, with a comprehensive win over Omonia, who were in their home stadium for the game.

The following campaign Pafos came through three stages of UECL qualifying, finishing twelfth in the league phase and then winning in the knockout phase before being eliminated by the Swedish side in the knockout stage.

They finished the season as champions of Cyprus for the first occasion – claiming the league by a clear margin and earning a route to the Champions League.

Jaja stoppage-time goal in Pafos' fixture on their ground against Crvena Zvezda to equalize for 1-1 (three-two) secured their place in the main competition.

"The head of state of Cyprus Christodoulides is a huge Pafos FC enthusiast who visits the arena."

"He watched the fixture. He watched it with anxiety. At the end he was ecstatic like a little kid. He was very crazy. There was a online footage of him rejoicing like a kid."

"It's like winning the championship in Cyprus, it's that significant a achievement."

"It's like a milestone you put next to your club’s history – one championship, a domestic cup and a UCL group stage entry. It's a major issue here."

'In My View We Can Achieve Greatness'

During the off-season, Pafos pulled off the surprise signing of defender David Luiz, who at the 38 years old had been with {Fortaleza|Fort