Stelios Giannakopoulos facts for kids
Stelios playing for Greece in 2008
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Stylianos Giannakopoulos | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 12 July 1974 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Athens, Greece | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.70 m | |||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Winger / Attacking midfielder | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| 1987-1991 | Doxa Vyronos | |||||||||||||||
| 1991–1992 | Ethnikos Asteras | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||||||
| 1992–1993 | Ethnikos Asteras | 32 | (6) | |||||||||||||
| 1993–1996 | Paniliakos | 84 | (26) | |||||||||||||
| 1996–2003 | Olympiacos | 190 | (64) | |||||||||||||
| 2003–2008 | Bolton Wanderers | 137 | (20) | |||||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | Hull City | 2 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2009 | AEL | 19 | (3) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 464 | (119) | ||||||||||||||
| National team | ||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2008 | Greece | 77 | (12) | |||||||||||||
| Teams managed | ||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Paniliakos | |||||||||||||||
| 2016–2018 | A.E. Kifisia | |||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Greece (assistant) | |||||||||||||||
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Honours
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Stylianos Giannakopoulos (born on July 12, 1974), often called Stelios, is a Greek football manager and a former player. He was known for playing as a winger or an attacking midfielder. Stelios became famous in Greek football, especially during his time with Bolton Wanderers. He was also a key player when Greece won the UEFA Euro 2004 championship.
Contents
Stelios's Football Journey
Starting Out in Greece
Stelios was born in Athens, Greece. His father, Alekos, was also a football player in the 1960s. Stelios started playing football at age seven for Ethnikos Asteras, a local club.
He later played for Doxa Vyronas for a year. In 1991, he made his first professional appearance for Ethnikos Asteras. That season, his team was promoted to the professional Third Division. The next year, Stelios scored six goals as a young striker. His skills caught the eye of bigger clubs.
In 1993, Stelios moved to Paniliakos. He played there for three years, scoring 26 goals in 84 games. During this time, he also became a member of the national U21 team.
Becoming a Star at Olympiacos
In 1996, at age 21, Stelios joined Olympiacos F.C., one of Greece's top clubs. A big moment in his career happened in his second season. He scored Olympiacos's first-ever Champions League goal against Porto. This amazing shot from 40 meters away was voted the best goal of the competition by fans. It also led to Olympiacos's first win in the Champions League.
Olympiacos won the Greek championship every season while Stelios was there. They even reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League in the 1998–99 season. Stelios became a very important player. In his last season with the club, he scored 15 goals. This included two goals in a crucial 3–0 win against their rivals Panathinaikos in May 2003.
Stelios played for Olympiacos for seven successful seasons. He made 189 appearances and scored 63 goals. Fans still see him as a club legend. They remember his strong effort in every match, especially against rivals like Panathinaikos and AEK Athens.
Moving to England: Bolton Wanderers
On May 28, 2003, Stelios moved to England to play for Bolton Wanderers in the Premier League. The manager, Sam Allardyce, said Stelios was an attacking midfielder who could score goals. He was good at running into the penalty area and shooting accurately from far away.
Stelios chose to have 'Stelios' printed on his shirt instead of his long last name. This made it easier for English journalists and fans. He played his first game for Bolton against Manchester United. In his first season, he helped Bolton reach the 2004 Football League Cup Final. They also achieved their highest-ever Premier League finish.
Stelios continued to play well in his first two seasons. Both Manchester City and Liverpool tried to sign him. But he signed a new contract with Bolton in August 2005. The 2005–06 season was his best at Bolton. He was the top scorer with 12 goals, which is impressive for a midfielder. A memorable moment was scoring the winning goal against Arsenal in an FA Cup match in January 2006.
In March 2006, Stelios played in a special 50th-anniversary game for Manchester United at Old Trafford. He played alongside famous players like Steven Gerrard and Andrea Pirlo.
In the 2007–08 season, Stelios was not a regular player due to injuries and changes in management. However, he scored some important late goals for Bolton. He scored in injury time in a League Cup game against Fulham. He also scored in the UEFA Cup to get a 1–1 draw against Aris Salonica. In a Premier League game against Derby, he scored in injury time to give Bolton three much-needed points. His very last goal for Bolton was crucial. He scored on April 26, 2008, in a 1–1 draw against Tottenham Hotspur, helping Bolton avoid being relegated.
After this season, Bolton did not offer Stelios a new contract. Many thought he would return to Greece and play for Olympiacos again. But Stelios wanted to stay in the Premier League. He was then linked with Hull City, a newly promoted team.
Short Stays at Hull City and AEL
On September 22, 2008, Hull City signed Stelios for one year. He joined Hull City for their first season ever in the top league. Stelios made his debut for Hull against Portsmouth on November 22, 2008. He came on as a substitute in the 82nd minute. He played only two league games and one FA Cup game for Hull. He then decided to move again because he wasn't playing much.
On January 22, 2009, Stelios returned to Greece. He signed with AEL for a year and a half. Stelios made an immediate impact. The Greek media called him the 'most important transfer of the winter'. He scored three key goals in his first four games. This helped Larissa move into the top five in the Greek Super League. Larissa kept this position, which meant they qualified for a European competition. Stelios felt this was a great achievement for a smaller team. The next season was not as good for Stelios due to injuries. He left Larissa on December 12, 2009, before his contract ended.
Playing for His Country: Greece
Stelios first played for the Greek national team on March 12, 1997. This was a friendly game against Cyprus. His first goal for Greece came almost two years later, on February 5, 1999, against Belgium.
He played less in 2000 and 2001. But from 2002 onwards, he became a regular player. He played in every game of the EURO 2004 qualifiers. One of his most important goals for Greece was during these qualifiers. Stelios scored the only goal in a 1–0 win against Spain in Zaragoza. This win helped Greece qualify automatically for the tournament.
Stelios was a key player in the team that won the 2004 European Football Championship. He played in four out of six games, including the final. After this success, Giannakopoulos remained an important part of the national team. He was Greece's top scorer in their 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, though they did not qualify. He was also part of the squad that tried to defend their title at UEFA Euro 2008. His last game for the national team was during that tournament, a 2–1 loss against Spain on June 18, 2008.
Stelios scored a total of 12 goals for the national team. Greece won almost every game in which Stelios scored.
Life After Playing Football
Becoming a Manager
On May 25, 2010, Stelios was chosen as the president of the Greek Professional Footballers Association. He took over from his former teammate Antonios Nikopolidis.
He started his career as a manager on August 13, 2012. He took charge of his old team Paniliakos F.C. in Football League 2 (Greece). However, Paniliakos let Stelios go on January 20, 2013. He later had short managing jobs with A.E. Kifisia F.C. in 2016. He also helped the national team manager Angelos Anastasiadis as an assistant coach for the Greece national team in 2018–19.
Speaking Out for Football
Stelios has often spoken about how football is managed in Greece. In March 2015, he told BBC Sport that he worried about violence at games. He said it could harm the future of the sport in his country. The Greek government had stopped professional football games three times that season because of violence. Stelios said, "Football people like myself, we are a little bit concerned about football in Greece in the future." He also added that they needed support from UEFA, the world players' union FIFPro, and the Greek government. He believed everyone should work together to make decisions.
Stelios's Family
Stelios has a son named Dimitris. Dimitris is also a footballer. As of 2022, he plays for the Bolton Wanderers Academy.
Images for kids
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Stelios playing for Greece in 2008
Honours and Awards
Stelios Giannakopoulos achieved many successes during his career:
Paniliakos
- Beta Ethniki: 1994–95 (Won the second division league)
Olympiacos
- Super League Greece: 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03 (Won the top Greek league seven times)
- Greek Cup: 1998–99 (Won the cup); runner-up in 2000–01, 2001–02 (Reached the final twice)
Bolton Wanderers
- Football League Cup runner-up: 2003–04 (Reached the final of the League Cup)
Greece National Team
Individual Awards
- Greek Footballer of the Year: 2003 (Voted best player in Greece)
- Greek Second Division best player: 1995 (Voted best player in the second division)
See also
In Spanish: Stelios Giannakopoulos para niños
