Nikos Spyropoulos ( el, Νίκος Σπυρόπουλος; born 10 October 1983) is a Greek former 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

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

Club career

Early career

Spyropoulos began his career with

PAS Giannina 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 2001, where he celebrated a promotion to the

Alpha Ethniki The Super League Greece 1 ( el, Ελληνική Σούπερ Λιγκ 1), or Super League 1, is the highest professional association football league in Greece. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and replaced ''Alpha Ethniki'' at the top of ...

during his first season. In three years, he made a total of 33 appearances for the club, all of which 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 ...

Panionios

In summer 2004 he signed for

Greek Superleague The Super League Greece 1 ( el, Ελληνική Σούπερ Λιγκ 1), or Super League 1, is the highest professional association football league in Greece. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and replaced ''Alpha Ethniki'' at the top of ...

side

Panionios Panionios G.S.S. Football Club (Greek: ΠΑΕ Πανιώνιος Γ.Σ.Σ.), the ''Pan- Ionian Gymnastics Club of Smyrna'' (Πανιώνιος Γυμναστικός Σύλλογος Σμύρνης, ''Panionios Gymnastikos Syllogos Smyrnis'') ...

. Eight months later, and while he was about to be transferred to

Panathinaikos Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos ( el, Παναθηναϊκός Αθλητικός Όμιλος, literally in English: "Panathenaic Athletic Club" or Panathinaikos A.C.), also known simply as Panathinaikós , is a major Greek multi-sport club ba ...

along with his teammates

Alexandros Tziolis Alexandros Tziolis ( el, Αλέξανδρος Τζιόλης; born 13 February 1985) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He was a Greek international from 2005 until his international retirement in 20 ...

and

Evangelos Mantzios Vangelis Mantzios ( el, Βαγγέλης Μάντζιος; born 22 April 1983) is a Greek professional footballer who plays as a forward for Gamma Ethniki club P.A.O. Rouf. Club career After establishing himself as one of the most talented you ...

, he tested positive for elevated

testosterone Testosterone is the primary sex hormone and anabolic steroid in males. In humans, testosterone plays a key role in the development of Male reproductive system, male reproductive tissues such as testes and prostate, as well as promoting secondar ...

and was initially suspended for two years. This was later attributed to natural causes, but his transfer was cancelled nevertheless. He returned to action one year later and went on to play for 3,5 years for

, earning the reputation of being one of the best left-backs in the Greek championship. During the summer transfer period of 2007 and the winter period of 2008, Spyropoulos attracted the interest of clubs such as

AEK Athens A.E.K ( el, AEK , formally Αθλητική Ένωσις Κωνσταντινουπόλεως; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople''), known as A.E.K, is a major Greece, Greek multi-sport club based in Nea ...

Olympiacos Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós ( el, Ολυμπιακός Σύνδεσμος Φιλάθλων Πειραιώς, Olympic Club of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a number ...

and

Werder Bremen Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen (), Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen, Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, they are be ...

– however a move did not materialize.

Panathinaikos

In January 2008, Spyropoulos moved to

Panathinaikos FC Panathinaikos Football Club ( el, ΠΑΕ Παναθηναϊκός Α.Ο. ), known as Panathinaikos, or by its full name, and the name of its parent sports club, Panathinaikos A.O. or PAO (; ''Panathinaïkós Athlitikós Ómilos'', "All-Athenian ...

for a reported fee of 2 million Εuros. After some impressive displays during the second half of 07–08 season, Spyropoulos has started the 08–09 season as the main left back for

Henk Ten Cate Hendrik Willem ten Cate (born 9 December 1954) is a Dutch football manager and former professional player. In the 2005–06 season, he was assistant to Frank Rijkaard at Barcelona when the team won the UEFA Champions League and La Liga titles. ...

, the manager had praised his ability by asking a "Spyropoulos for the right side" too, during the pre-season. Spyropoulos main assets are his speed, stamina and the ability to go forward whenever possible. Due to a clause he was not able to play against his previous team

for two years after his transfer to

Chievo Verona

Two days before the winter transfer window closes, the Greek defender Nikolaos Spyropoulos was presented to the press today at Peschiera's Parc Hotel. signing for the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...

side

A.C. Chievo Verona Associazione Calcio ChievoVerona, commonly referred to as ChievoVerona or simply Chievo , is a former professional Italian football club named after and based in Chievo, a suburb of 4,500 inhabitants in Verona, Veneto, and owned by Paluani, a ...

. Spyropoulos said: ''"I'm here too to play my part. I'll try to settle in as quickly as possible, to help Chievo reach their target. I'm a defender but I can play in many positions and I like attacking play. I thank Chievo for giving me the chance to play in Italy. I'll do my best to repay the trust of the chairman and the club."'' He made two appearances for the club before missing the remainder of the season through injury.

PAOK

An announcement on PAOK’s official Twitter profile confirmed the acquisition of Spyropoulos, who spent the last six months in Italy with

Chievo Verona Associazione Calcio ChievoVerona, commonly referred to as ChievoVerona or simply Chievo , is a former professional Football in Italy, Italian football club named after and based in Chievo, a suburb of 4,500 inhabitants in Verona, Veneto, and o ...

after leaving

during last January’s transfer window. No financial details of Spyropoulos’ contract or terms were revealed by the club, but the Greek international will join the first team for its training camp in Austria starting on Monday. He made his debut with the club in December 2013 in a 2-0 away win against

. On 15 April 2015, his contract was terminated.

International career

His talent was initially ignored by

Otto Rehhagel Otto Rehhagel (; born 9 August 1938) is a German former football coach and player. Rehhagel is one of only two people who, as player and manager combined, has participated in over 1,000 Bundesliga matches (the other being Jupp Heynckes). In t ...

, but in 2007 the elector capped him. Spyropoulos is left-footed and is distinguished by a combination of speed, strength, agility and endurance. On 17 November 2007 he made his national team debut in the 5–0

Euro 2008 The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European ...

qualifier defeat of

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

coming on for

Vasilis Torosidis Vasilis Torosidis (Greek: Βασίλης Τοροσίδης, born 10 June 1985) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a right-back. Club career Skoda Xanthi Torosidis made his senior debut for Skoda Xanthi on 19 April 2003 at ...

in the 46th minute.

International goals

Career statistics

Honours

Panathinaikos *

Super League Greece The Super League Greece 1 ( el, Ελληνική Σούπερ Λιγκ 1), or Super League 1, is the highest professional association football league in Greece. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and replaced ''Alpha Ethniki'' at the top of ...

: 2009–10 *

Greek Cup The Greek Football Cup ( el, Κύπελλο Ελλάδος Ποδοσφαίρου), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Kypello Elladas is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation. The Greek Cup is the second most im ...

: 2009–10 PAOK *

runner-up: 2013–14

Notes

:A. Includes appearances in the

Superleague Greece The Super League Greece 1 ( el, Ελληνική Σούπερ Λιγκ 1), or Super League 1, is the highest professional association football league in Greece. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and replaced ''Alpha Ethniki'' at the top of ...

(Alpha Ethniki until 2006) and

. :B. Includes appearances in the

. :C. Includes appearances in the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

and

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...

(UEFA Cup until 2009). :D. Includes appearances in the Superleague Greece play-offs.

References

External links

2010 FIFA World Cup profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spyropoulos, Nikos 1983 births Living people Footballers from Ioannina Association football defenders Association football midfielders Greek footballers Greece international footballers Greek expatriate footballers Panionios F.C. players Panathinaikos F.C. players PAS Giannina F.C. players A.C. ChievoVerona players PAOK FC players Super League Greece players Serie A players Football League (Greece) players UEFA Euro 2008 players 2010 FIFA World Cup players Expatriate footballers in Italy