By Patrick Akoto
Greek giants Panathinaikos are considering terminating the contract of injury-prone Ghana midfielder Michael Essien, fresh reports have emerged in the European country.
Officials of the Greens are pondering over releasing him due to his recurrent injuries which has kept him out of the club since joining in the summer.
It appears officials of Panathinaikos are getting fed up with Essien’s injury woes and are mapping out strategies to ‘get rid of the average’ 32-year-old without incurring debt, according to fresh media reports in Greece.
The Ghana international joined Panathinaikos for € 1.6m per year in his two-year deal with the Greens to make him the highest paid player in Greece.
But the former Chelsea star is yet to play in a competitive game due to recurrent injury problems, prompting officials of the club to tinker with the idea of ending their association with him.
Essien’s contract can be canceled with the excuse that he has not featured in the number of required game since joining with more crucially no end in sight to his injury woes.
The Greek giants were forced to deny widespread media reports last week which claimed he has suffered a fresh injury after undergoing further test and observation at the Metropolitan hospital.
After making his name as a box-to-box midfielder at Bastia and Olympique Lyonnais in France, Essien signed for Chelsea in 2005 and spent nine years at the west London club where he won two league titles and four FA Cups.
He spent the 2012-13 season on loan at Real Madrid before joining Milan in January 2014 where he struggled to make an impact in a below-par team which finished 10th in that season.
The capture of Essien was a huge coup for Panathinaikos, who have not won a league title since 2010 when Frenchman Djibril Cisse spearheaded the attack.
But after a strong finish to the season under young Greek coach Giannis Anastasiou, they came second behind Olympiakos in the league and went on to clinch Greece's second Champions League spot via the playoffs.