Apostolos "Lakis" Papaioannou (Greek: Απόστολος "Λάκης" Παπαϊωάννου; born 5 October 1956) is a retired Greek professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a midfielder.

Career

Club career

Born in

Katerini Katerini ( el, Κατερίνη, ''Kateríni'', ) is a city and municipality in northern Greece, the capital city of Pieria regional unit in Central Macedonia, Greece. It lies on the Pierian plain, between Mt. Olympus and the Thermaikos Gulf, ...

, Papaioannou began playing football with the youth sides of A.O. Katerinis and

Pierikos F.C. S.F.K. Pierikos ( el, Σ.Φ.Κ. Πιερικός) is a Greek football club based in Katerini, Greece, part of the major multi-sport club of the same name. Their name was inspired from the State's name of Pieria. The club recently competed in ...

In 1973, he made his senior debut for Pierikos in the

Beta Ethniki The Football League ( el, Φούτμπολ Λιγκ) was the second highest professional football league in Greece since its inception in 1962 as ''Beta Ethniki'' and until 2019. It then served as a third tier after the creation of the Super Lea ...

. Papaioannou helped Pierikos to gain its promotion to the Alpha Ethniki in 1975, and played for the club until 1979 when it was relegated to the regional leagues. Alpha Ethniki side

Iraklis Thessaloniki F.C. Gymnastic Club Iraklis Thessaloniki Football Club ( el, Γυμναστικός Σύλλογος Ηρακλής Θεσσαλονίκης) is a Greek professional football club based in the city of Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Greece. As of 2022, t ...

signed Papaioannou in 1979, and would play for Iraklis until city rivals PAOK F.C. signed him in 1986. Papaioannou helped PAOK to consecutive second-place finishes in the league, and then joined

PAS Giannina F.C. PAS Giannina Football Club ( el, ΠΑΕ ΠΑΣ Γιάννινα 1966), or with its full name Panepirotikos Athlitikos Syllogos Giannina ( el, Πανηπειρωτικός Αθλητικός Σύλλογος Γιάννινα, ''Panepirotic Athleti ...

in 1988. His finished his career with Patras F.C., retiring in 1992. All told, Papaioannou made over 500 appearances in the Greek first and second divisions.

International

Papaioannou made 38 appearances and scored two goals for the Greece national football team from 1977 to 1987. He made his debut as a second-half substitute in a 6–1 friendly defeat to Romania on 21 September 1977.

Post retirement

After he retired from playing, Papaioannou became a football scout. He led the scouting and recruiting efforts for

Arsenal F.C. Arsenal Football Club, commonly referred to as Arsenal, is a professional football club based in Islington, London, England. Arsenal plays in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The club has won 13 league titles (inclu ...

's new elite football academy in Loutraki.

Personal life

Lakis Papaioannou is married to Konstantina Tarantzopoulou or otherwise Dina Papaioannou, a performer in northern Greece. His daughter, Eleana, is a

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

singer.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Papaioannou, Lakis 1956 births Living people Greek footballers Greece international footballers Pierikos F.C. players Iraklis Thessaloniki F.C. players PAOK FC players Footballers from Katerini PAS Giannina F.C. players Super League Greece players Association football midfielders A.O. Kerkyra managers