A day before a critical Eurogroup meeting on Wednesday, where deliberations over Athens’ request for a “bridge agreement” until the summer in order to present its program will be aired, the European Commission mostly dampened expectations, saying chances of a final deal this weeek are low.

Specifically, a Commission spokeswoman said on Tuesday that although intensive contacts are underway between EC officials and the Greek side, these contacts have not been conclusive so far.

It should be noted that, earlier on Tuesday, an unnamed senior EC official told Reuters that “the two sides were not much closer to a solution.”

According to this source, FinMin Yanis Varoufakis’ recent interview to Italian television was perceived as “incendiary”. Moreover, the “dogmatic attitude in Athens,” according to the same unnamed source, is fueled by the NYC investment bank Lazard, which Varoufakis hired last week as an adviser for the Greek debt issue.