Greece's 2004 vintage: where are they now?
miércoles, 30 de septiembre de 2015
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Following Kostas Katsouranis's retirement at the age of 36, UEFA.com catches up with the Greek side who prevailed against all odds at UEFA EURO 2004.
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Goalkeeper: Antonis Nikopolidis
Nikopolidis, who kept three clean sheets in the UEFA EURO 2004 knockout stage, is considered one of the best keepers the country has produced. He enjoyed successful spells at Panathinaikos and Olympiacos, becoming central to the latter's domestic dominance after moving to the Piraeus club in 2004, his combined tally of 11 league titles and nine domestic cups being unrivalled by any Greek player. Nikopolidis retired in 2011 and following spells as Olympiacos assistant coach has been named as coach of Greece's Under-21s.
Defender: Giourkas Seitaridis
Seitaridis was an accomplished presence at right-back during Greece's march to glory. He contributed to a parsimonious defence while also providing an attacking outlet: his burst earned Greece a penalty in their tournament opener against Portugal. He marked Thierry Henry and Milan Baroš out of games and victory completed a wonderful season in which he won the domestic double with Panathinaikos. After the tournament he joined Porto, and had stints at Dinamo Moskva and Atlético Madrid before returning to Panathinaikos, where he stayed until summer 2013.
Defender: Traianos Dellas
Dellas was key to Greece conceding only four goals throughout their campaign. Dubbed the 'Colossus of Rhodes' by coach Otto Rehhagel, he turned in a series of memorable displays and headed the silver goal – his only strike in 53 internationals – in the semi-final against the Czech Republic. Dellas left AS Roma in 2005 and had two subsequent spells with AEK Athens – either side of two years with Anorthosis Famagusta, whom he helped to the 2008/09 UEFA Champions League group stage. He retired in summer 2012 and was appointed AEK coach in April 2013, leading them to back-to-back promotions from the Greek third tier to the top flight.
Defender: Michalis Kapsis
Football was in Kapsis's genes, as his father Anthimos was a Greek international and a member of the Panathinaikos team that lost to Ajax in the 1971 European Cup final. Michalis earned his first senior cap in June 2003, showing his man-marking skills by keeping Spain's Raúl González quiet in a surprise 1-0 win. He did a similar job on Jan Koller in the final tournament. After the finals he joined Bordeaux, going on to play for Olympiacos, APOEL, Levadiakos and Ethnikos Piraeus (also his first club), where he retired in 2012.
Defender: Takis Fyssas
Fyssas began his career at Panionios and made his top-flight debut in 1990. After establishing himself with Panathinaikos, he signed for Benfica in December 2003 and scored in the 2004 Portuguese Cup final, denying José Mourinho's Porto a treble. A month later, he was starting left-back all the way to his 'home' final at the Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica. He had a spell at Heart of Midlothian and returned to Panathinaikos before retiring in summer 2008. He subsequently took over as technical director of the Greece national team, and became director of football at Panathinaikos in August 2014.
Midfielder: Theodoros Zagorakis
A former PAOK president, Zagorakis became a Member of the European Parliament in 2014. He did not score in Portugal – his first goal for his country did not arrive until cap No101, against Denmark, seven months later – but, the heart of the midfield, he was Greece's most effective player in the final. Zagorakis could never have imagined during a journeyman career that included spells in England and Italy that he would reach such lofty international heights. He retired in 2007 with 120 caps, his only major club honour a 2002 cup triumph with AEK.
Midfielder: Angelos Basinas
Formerly of Panathinaikos, Mallorca, AEK, Portsmouth, Arles-Avignon and Feyenoord, Basinas is studying for his coaching diploma. One of only four players to have amassed 100-plus caps for Greece, he earned his first on 18 August 1999, the same day as his close friend Nikopolidis. He was a key player at UEFA EURO 2004. Utilised as a holding midfielder, he scored a penalty in the opening 2-1 victory over Portugal and delivered the corner from which Angelos Charisteas headed the winner against the hosts in the final.
Midfielder: Kostas Katsouranis
A versatile defensive midfielder, Katsouranis called time on his career at the age of 36. He played at three UEFA European Championships and two FIFA World Cups, making three appearances in Brazil in 2014 when Greece reached the knockout stage for the first time. He earned the first of his 116 caps in August 2003, moving to Benfica from AEK in 2006. Katsouranis returned to Greece in 2009 with Panathinaikos, helping them to a domestic double in 2010. Later with PAOK, he played in India and finished up with a six-month stint at Atromitos.
Midfielder: Stelios Giannakopoulos
Giannakopoulos is a regular pundit on Greek TV. In 2010, he retired from playing to become president of Greek Professional Footballers' Association and two years later started his coaching career with Paniliakos FC. The suspension of Giorgos Karagounis meant Giannakopoulos started the Lisbon final. Almost 13 months earlier he had scored in a 1-0 qualifying win against Spain in Zaragoza, a victory that kick-started Greece's run to glory. The former Bolton Wanderers, Hull City and Larissa man enjoyed his best years with Olympiacos, winning the league in each of his seven seasons.
Forward: Angelos Charisteas
The most memorable moment of an international career spanning 88 caps and featuring 25 goals came when he headed the winner in the UEFA EURO 2004 final, having scored in a group match against Spain and versus France in the quarter-finals. The tall striker had something of a nomadic existence post-Portugal, leaving Werder Bremen for Ajax and then spending time with Feyenoord, Nürnberg, Bayer Leverkusen, Arles, Schalke, Panetolikos and Al Nassr. He was briefly technical director of Aris – his first club – in 2014.
Forward: Zisis Vryzas
The tall forward's goal in the group stage defeat against Russia helped Greece lever Spain out of runners-up spot on goals scored. A fans' favourite at PAOK, where his fine equaliser at Highbury featured in a celebrated 2-1 aggregate success against Arsenal in the 1997/98 UEFA Cup, Vryzas played abroad with Perugia, Fiorentina, Celta Vigo and Torino. He returned to Greece in 2006, becoming PAOK technical director after retiring in 2008. Briefly Fernando Santos's assistant with the national team and PAOK club president, Vryzas has been technical director at Veria since August 2015.
Defender: Stelios Venetidis
A talented, reliable left-back, Venetidis made his Greece debut in the same game as Giorgos Karagounis – a 3-0 win against El Salvador on 20 August 1999. Having shone at Xanthi, Venetidis joined Olympiacos a month after winning the 2000/01 Greek Cup with PAOK. His UEFA EURO 2004 adventure came midway through a five-year spell in Piraeus which netted him four league titles and two more Greek Cups. Capped 42 times, he hung up his boots in 2012 after a stint at Larissa FC. Now assistant coach at Panthrikakos.
Forward: Dimitris Papadopoulos
Currently a free agent, Papadopoulos was – at 22 – the youngest member of the 2004 finals squad. He came to Portugal fresh from winning a domestic double with Panathinaikos, and represented Greece at the Olympics later that summer. Adventures with Lecce, Dinamo Zagreb and Celta Vigo heralded a drift away from international football, but Papadopoulos was recalled in August 2013 after winning Greece's player of the year award at Panthrakikos. Now at Asteras Tripolis following a spell at PAOK.
Coach: Otto Rehhagel
'Rehakles' is enjoying his retirement again, having briefly interrupted it to take over at Hertha Berlin – a club he played for in the 1960s – in 2012. Now 75, Rehhagel reinvented the Greek national team from 2001–10, having previously worked marvels in his native Germany. Known as the 'Kind der Bundesliga' (child of the Bundesliga) for his 1,000 top-flight games as a player and coach, the charismatic Rehhagel transformed Bremen into a major force, earning two titles (1987/88, 1992/93) and the 1991/92 European Cup Winners' Cup, then won the league with promoted Kaiserslautern (1997/98).