The next destination of our alphabetical world tour is Greece. Ethniki shocked Europe by winning Euro 2004 but have struggled in recent years, failing to qualify for the last three major tournaments including Euro 2020.
According to the Premier League website, 26 players have represented Greece in the Premier League, the first of which came back in 1996.
First Player – Giorgos Donis (Blackburn Rovers; 1996-97)
Spending a single season with Blackburn Rovers after joining on a Bosman transfer, Giorgos Donis became the first Greek to appear in the Premier League.
The campaign began disastrously with the Riversiders struggling for goals after the £15 million sale of Alan Shearer in the summer and languishing in the relegation zone for much of the first half of the campaign.
Blackburn improved however, though Donis’ contribution dwindled after featuring heavily before November. Though Blackburn survived, Donis was released from his contract the following September after failing to win over new manager Roy Hodgson.
Most Appearances: Nikolaos Dabizas – 148 (Newcastle, Leicester; 1998-2004)
A dependable defender, Nikos Dabizas was a regular for Newcastle and Leicester between 1998 and 2004. He joined the Mapgpies in the back end of 1997/98 and settled immediately, subsequently playing the full 90 minutes of Newcastle’s FA Cup Final loss to Arsenal in May.
He and Newcastle repeated that feat the following season, losing to Manchester United on that occasion. After five years with the Magpies, Dabizas joined Leicester in 2003 after falling out of favour with the late Sir Bobby Robson. He was unable to save the Foxes from relegation, however, but remained with the club for their Championship campaign in 2004/05.
Top Scorer: Stelios Giannakopoulos – 20 (Bolton, Hull; 2003-09)
Stelios Giannakopoulos terrorised Premier League left backs over six years with Bolton Wanderers and Hull City. He was brought to Bolton by Sam Allardyce, after winning seven consecutive Greek League titles with Olympiakos and though his goal return was not as impressive as it was in Greece, Stelios managed 20 league goals and finished the 2005/06 season as the Trotters’ top scorer.
Bolton reached the League Cup Final in Stelios’ first season and earnt four consecutive top-eight finishes. He was released in 2008 and joined newly promoted Hull City, making just two appearances for the Tigers.
Current Players
Arsenal’s Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Watford’s José Holebas were the only Greeks to have featured in the Premier League before the lockdown last season. Sokratis’ Gunners teammate Konstantinos Mavropanos remains a Premier League player but spent the 2019/20 campaign on loan at German side Nürnberg.
Trivia
- Former Fulham midfielder Giorgos Karagounis is the most capped player in the history of the Greek national team (139 caps).
- Former Portsmouth striker Theofanis Gekas finished as the Bundesliga top scorer in 2006/07.
- Sokratis Papastathopoulos scored the only goal Costa Rica conceded from open play at the 2014 World Cup.
- Former Leicester midfielder Theodoros Zagorakis captained Greece to the Euro 2004 title, winning player of the tournament.
