10 Most Popular Greek Football (Soccer) Players

The Greece national team. Picture By Steindy. Wikimedia

10 Most Popular Greek Football (Soccer) Players

Greece had been mostly a small name in international football, and only in the 1980s that experienced the first taste of football achievement, made their first appearance in a major tournament at UEFA Euro 1980 and although they did not make it through the group stage, their qualification to the then eight-team tournament gave them a position in the top eight European football nations that year.

Greece did not qualify for another major tournament until the 1994 FIFA World Cup and after an undefeated qualifying campaign, they produced a poor performance in the final tournament, losing all three group matches without scoring.

Up until 2004, Greece had been mostly a much weaker team in the European football scene. Greek has failed to make it to World Cup 2022. However, Greek has popular players who have played for the country, and others are currently playing. This article will feature the most popular Greek Footballers. 

1. Konstantinos Tsimikas

Konstantinos ‘Kostas’ Tsimikas (FC Liverpool, 21). By Steffen Prößdorf, Wikimedia

“Cross-tas” is the moniker he goes by in the Biography section. Tsimikas was born on May 12th, 1996, in Thessaloniki, Greece to George and Christina Tsimikas. His parents’ union produced two offspring, the eldest of whom is him. Greek professional footballer who plays as a  left-back for premier league club  Liverpool and the  Greece national team.

Tsimikas previously played for  Olympiacos, and also had loan spells with  Esbjerg and  Willem II. On 11 August 2020, Tsimikas signed for Liverpool on a deal for a reported fee of £11.75 million.

He became just the second Greek footballer to become a Liverpool player after Sotirios who joined the club from  Athens in 2009. Tsimika’s speed and passing accuracy have helped him provide assists and scores for the club.

He has won several awards that include UEFA champions, FA CUP, EFL Cup, and Premier League.

2. Dimitris Giannoulis

Dimitrios Christos “Dimitris” Giannoulis (born 17 October 1995) is a Greek professional soccer player who plays as a  left-back for  Premier League club  Norwich City and the  Greece national team.

The talented player has played for major clubs like Vataniakos, PAOK, and currently Norwich City. Physicality, pace, and brilliant mind on the pitch become a good left-back for Norwich City.

He has won major awards like EFL Championship with Norwich, Super League Greece, and Greek Cup with PAOK. He has also won the Greece Super League player of the year.

On 15 May 2018, Giannoulis was one of nine players to make their  Greece National Team debut in a 2–0 friendly loss against  Saudi Arabia. With the kind of quality he depicts, He is one of the Greek players expected to raise morale in the Greek national football team.  

3. Dimitrios Keramitsis

 Born 1 July 2004, Dimitrios is a Greek professional footballer who plays as a center-back for  Serie A club  Roma.

A right-footed center-back who also makes good use of his left foot, allowing him to build the game from the back—he is described as a physical player, good at marking his opponent and with a fine sense of timing, able to play both in a 3 or 4-men defense.

In his early career, his origins and his debut at Roma soon earned him comparisons with the international defender  Kostas Manolas. He has played for other clubs like Empoli, Thessaloniki, and PAOK before joining Roma under manager Jose Mourinho. Dimitrios has won several honors that include UEFA Europa Conference League with Roma and  Campionato Primavera with Empoli. He is a promising young footballer.

4. Antonis Stergiakis

Antonis Stergiakis. By Biser Todorov. Wikimedia

Great Goal Keeper, Antonis Stergiakis was born on 16th March 1999.  He plays as a  goalkeeper for  Super League club  Panetolikos.  He has featured for Slavia Sofia, Blackburn Rovers, and Panetolikos as of 2022.

Antonis also has international experience, playing for Greece’s age-group sides up to the under-21 level. In November 2018, Stergiakis was called up by  Greece U-21for the first time.

He made his under-21 debut on 26 March 2019, in a friendly at home against  Montenegro, which ended 1–1.

His final appearance for the U21 national team came in the form of a 5-0 defeat in the side’s 2021 European Under 21 Championship qualifiers game against  Croatia on 3 September 2020. He has an Honor award for winning Bulgarian Cup with Slavia Sofia.

5. George Baldock

The great George Baldock is a professional footballer who plays as a  right-back for  EFL Championship club  Sheffield United. Born in England, he plays for the  Greece national team. was born in  Buckingham, Buckinghamshire.

He started his career playing for the Milton Keynes Don academy team. His older brother Sam Baldock also played for the club. On 30 October 2011, he joined Northampton Town on a month’s loan.

In March 2012 he joined  Tamworth on loan, along with a teammate  Charlie Collins. On 13 June 2017, Baldock was reunited with former Oxford manager  Chris Wilder when he joined newly promoted  Championship club  Sheffield United, on a three-year deal for an undisclosed fee.

On 27 May 2022, he was called up to the Greece national team by Head Coach  Gus Poyet for the first time ahead of their  2022-23 UEFA June fixtures. 2nd of June 2022, Baldock made his debut for Greece in a 1–0 win over Northern Ireland.

6. Charalampos Lykogiannis

Charalampos ‘Babis’ Lykogiannis born 22 October 1993), also known as Lykos (Greek for “wolf” – from the first letters of his name), is a Greek professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Serie A club Bologna and the Greece national team. Lykogiannis is a product of the youth system of Olympiacos and very soon became a vital part of Olympiacos’ football academy.

He is considered one of the most gifted players of his generation. On 25 October 2012, Lykogiannis made his European debut in an away UEFA Champions League game. He has played Levadiakos, Ergotelis, Strum Graz, Cagliari and Bologna.

On 24 May 2017, Lykogiannis received his debut  Greece national football call from  Michael Skibbe for the match against the Bosnia national football team in the preliminary round of the 2018 World Cup.

On 3 September 2017, he made his debut as a substitute in a 1–2 home loss for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification against  Belgium. He has won the super league and Greek Cup with Olympiacos.

7. Sokratis Papastathopoulos

Sokratis Papastathopoulos. Picture By Allura. Wikimedia

The Greece captain has played the majority of his career outside of his native land, and in the summer of 2018, he became the 25th Greek player to play in the Premier League. Papastathopoulos began his career with youth teams such as AEK Athens.

The dependable center-back won a Serie A with AC Milan and a German Super Cup with Borussia Dortmund, before joining Arsenal, with whom he won an FA Cup.  His physical nature and excellent understanding of the game provided a much-needed experience to The Gunners’ backline.

It helped Arsenal stay within the top confines of the Premier League title despite The Gunners not always looking their best. After failing to get much game time at the start of the 2020/21 season, Sokratis left London to join Greek side Olympiakos for regular football. A quiet end for one of Greece’s more prominent players of the 2010s. 

8.  Angelos Charisteas

Angelos Charisteas. Picture By Stelios Tsaousidis. Wikimedia

Angelos Charisteas born 9 February 1980) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward. He works as sporting director for Aris Thessaloniki.

At the club level, he played for Aris Thessaloniki, Werder Bremen, Ajax, Feyenoord, Bayer Leverkusen, Schalke 04, Arles-Avignon, and Al-Nassr. Internationally, he was capped 88 times by Greece, scoring 25 goals.

He was a member of the UEFA Euro 2004 winning team, scoring three goals, including the winning goal in the final against Portugal. He also represented Greece at Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup.

9. Georgios Karagkounis

Georgios Karagkounis, known as Giorgos Karagounis, is a former Greek professional footballer who played as a midfielder.

He had a rich club career, as he played for Panathinaikos, Apollon Smyrnis, Inter Milan, Benfica, and Fulham.

But, it is safe to say that Karagounis had a better career on the international level. As you know, Karagounis represented Greece between 1999 and 2014. His biggest success happened back in 2004 when he was a member of the UEFA Euro 2004-winning squad. He also represented Greece at UEFA Euro 2008, the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Euro 2012, and the 2014 World Cup. With 139 appearances, he is the most capped player in the history of the Greece national team.

He is a legend of Greek football.

10. Jose Holebas

Despite being born and raised in Germany, it was his mother’s home nation of Greece that Jose Holebas chose to represent.

However, his mixed upbringing saw him develop a style that was as technical as it was physical. This skillset made him the perfect anchor in defense which Watford noticed when they signed him from Roma in 2015.

Strong in the air but also excellent at passing, Holebas became the lynchpin of the backline at Vicarage Road. His commanding presence helped keep The Hornets organized as they slowly evolved from relegation candidates to mid-table stalwarts.

He spent five seasons with the club before moving to Olympiakos in 2020 before ending his career at the end of the 2020/21 season.