The Biggest Talents outside Greece’s Top 5

The Biggest Talents outside Greece’s Top 5 

By Kostas Vlachos

We often hear a lot about young talents slowly breaking into Greece’s big teams. Whether it’s Tzolis or Tsingaras at PAOK, Alexandropoulos at Panathinaikos, Machairas at AEK or Tzolakis at Olympiakos, they have been debated and dreamt about ad nauseam. 

This blog will attempt to look at some talents breaking their way (or already playing in) the Super League’s lower-level clubs (with a notable SLGR2 exception).

Anastasios Douvikas - Volos NPS - Striker (2.8.1999)

Easily the top talent out of this list, Tasos Douvikas has had a meteoric rise this season since signing from Asteras Tripolis on a free transfer, especially considering he played 46 minutes of football in the entire 2019-20 season. 

At only 21 years of age, he has been the main goal-getter for a strong Volos side, scoring 13 goals and 3 assists in 32 appearances in all competitions, while he has also just made his debut for the Ethniki Omada in a friendly against Honduras. He is a classic centre forward: tall, strong, and an instinctive finisher, he has a bright future ahead of him.

While there were plenty of rumours that he would transfer to PAOK in the January transfer window, Volos managed to retain his services until at least this summer (his contract runs until 2023, ensuring they will receive a hefty transfer fee). There were also reports of Anderlecht scouts watching several games of his, meaning a transfer to clubs outside Greece is also definitely a possibility.

Dimitris Pinakas - AE Larissa - Striker/Right Winger/Attacking Midfielder (1.9.2001)

For a Larissa side that has disappointed to say the least (at the time of writing, they are rock bottom of the table with 20 points), the 19 year old Dimitris Pinakas, an academy product who grew up in Larissa, has been one of their shining lights this season.

While he hardly played for the first team last season - he only got substantial playing time in the mostly irrelevant Play-Outs at the end of the season - he shone in the U19 squad and it was clear that he would play a larger role in the 2020-21 season.

Pinakas has exploded this season, scoring 7 goals in 23 games, the highlight of which was a beautiful solo goal in a 1:1 draw against PAOK in the beginning of the season. His versatility across the attack is also impressive: while mainly playing as striker under Michalis Grigoriou and Giannis Tatsis, Gianluca Festa has mainly used him as a number 10 or winger. Despite not being very tall, he is also strong in the air - 4 of his goals this season have been headers.

He is unlikely to stay at AEL after this summer (despite his contract running until 2023), and there has already been contact from big clubs such as Olympiakos. Alexis Kougias has reportedly set his price tag at 3 million, a sum that is unlikely to be met, but there can be no doubt that whatever the deal will be, AEL will heavily profit from their trust in Pinakas.

Giorgos Liavas - Panaitolikos - Center/Right Back, Defensive Midfielder

Similar to Pinakas, Liavas’s side, Panaitolikos, has disappointed this season, but he has been a consistent force in their defence. A very versatile defender, he broke into the Panaitolikos first team at the age of 17, playing at various positions, mainly right-back and defensive midfield. He also wrote Panaitolikos history when he became the youngest player at the club to wear the captain’s armband, against Aris in January 2020.

Now at 20 years of age, he has mainly transitioned to center-back (though remains versatile). With excellent physical qualities and a fighting spirit, he is a born defender, but also possesses the technical qualities needed in the modern game.

While a cruciate ligament injury is likely to set him back in his progress, he remains an important player for Panaitolikos (he has played 20 games this season), and will continue his development.

Apostolos Konstantopoulos - Panaitolikos - Center Back (2.8.2002)

Having come through the academy system, at only 17 years of age, in the middle of a relegation battle that can make a seasoned veteran nervous, Tolis Konstantopoulos burst onto the scene in last season’s play-outs, scoring a goal on his debut against Atromitos and generally impressing in the 3 games he played at the end of the season. 

Ever since, he has become a mainstay in Agrinio, having played in 22 games this season. He has also debuted for the Greece Under 21 side last October and has generally impressed with his performances. A tall (1.91m) center back that is especially strong in the air (having scored 4 goals from set pieces last season).

According to reports, Olympiakos is already interested in the young center back whose contract will run until 2024. Should he stay, him and Liavas will be a formidable partnership for the Agrinio side until they are sold off at a large profit for the club.

Angelos Liasos - PAS Giannina - Defensive Midfielder (25.5.2000)

Perhaps a lesser known name than the aforementioned ones, Angelos Liasos has come up through PAS Giannina’s academy and was already promoted to the first team after PAS was relegated to the second division in 2019. Argyris Giannikis immediately began trusting him and his presence in midfield helped PAS gain promotion to the Super League a year later.

Nowadays, the 20 year old Liasos has had good performances in his debut Super League season, rarely starting but coming on as a substitute to offer PAS defensive stability in the latter stages (he has played a total of just under 600 minutes this season). His playing style is reminiscent of someone like Manolis Siopis: he is a dynamic presence in midfield, cutting out passing lines, covering a lot of space and pressing opponents. 

While there is not a lot of interest from big clubs at the moment, having now gotten used to the rhythm of the Super League, Liasos is still young and has the potential and opportunity to make the next season his breakout one, finally winning a starting XI position.

Christos Mandas - Atromitos - Goalkeeper (17.9.2001)

Shortly after turning 18 years old, Mandas made his Super League debut in the 2019-20 and impressed for his first few games. A few weeks after, though, a nightmarish performance in a 3-2 loss against AEK, reminiscent of Loris Karius in the 2018 CL final, ensured he was swiftly dropped and replaced for the rest of the season by Balazs Megyeri. 

Now at 19 years of age, he has bounced back well, initially playing second fiddle to ex-Olympiakos keeper Andreas Giannotis and then replacing him after an elbow injury in the last 12 games - but then keeping his spot as well.

While Mandas has occasionally seemed unconfident in his position, his talents are undeniable. He is a tall goalkeeper who can communicate with and organize a defence well, and while he is not always great on the ball, he has excellent reflexes. It is no surprise that he was scouted by clubs like Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund when he was younger - and he still has a great future. Should clubs be interested in him if he develops as expected - he has a mere 2M release clause.

Apostolos Diamantis - OFI - Center Back (2.5.2020)

A part of the much-touted PAOK generation of 2000-01, Diamantis is one of the few who have not disappointed and have played consistent football. Loaned out to Volos last year, he joined OFI on a free transfer in 2020 and has impressed. He also captained the Ethniki Elpidon (U21) in their qualifying game against Cyprus.

Whether it’s in a pairing with Selimovic, Vouros or Giannoulis, Diamantis has consistently been a part of OFI’s defence, only failing to start 3 league games this season. He is one of the few who have not disappointed within an overall terrible OFI team this season, and will have a big role to play in the upcoming relegation battle.

He is the epitome of the modern center-back, with good technical skills on the ball, pace and good in the air. He has been one of the calm presences in OFI’s defence this season despite them disappointing. It is also noteworthy that PAOK maintains a buy-back clause of 200k.

Conclusion

While a lot of these players are not talked about as often as talents at the big clubs (with the exception of Douvikas and perhaps Pinakas), they show that even clubs with lower investment in their academies can still churn out talents that can eventually move on to bigger Greek clubs or abroad. The catch is whether they get playing time or not: these players are often a minority in a squad full of veteran foreigners, and this is something that has to change across Greece if we want to export these kinds of footballers on a greater scale.

Honourable Mentions

Antonis Tsiftsis - Asteras Tripolis - Goalkeeper (21.7.1999)

Gerasimos Mitoglou - Volos NPS - Center-back (20.10.1999)

Alexandros Lolis - PAS Giannina - Attacking midfield/Left wing (5.9.2002)

Spyros Natsos - Atromitos - Right-back/Central midfield (9.6.1998)

Anestis Vlachomitros - Lamia - Centre-forward (6.11.2001)

Abdul Rahman Oues - OFI - Right-back (14.6.1998)

Odysseas Lymperakis - OFI - Left-back (5.6.1998)

Konstantinos Balogiannis - OFI - Central Midfield/Left wing (8.2.1999)

Frixos Grivas - OFI - Right wing/Striker (23.9.2000)

Angelos Tsingaras - Panaitolikos - Defensive midfield (24.7.1999)

Kostas Thymianis - Xanthi (SLGR2) - Center-back/Defensive midfield (28.2.2001)

Hellas Football 

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