Odisseas Vlachodimos
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Odysseas Vlachodimos ( Greek: Οδυσσέας Βλαχοδήμος, born 26 April 1994) is a 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 plays as a
goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...
for
Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal, ...
club Benfica. Born in Germany, he plays for the Greece national team.


Club career


Stuttgart

Born in
Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
, Vlachodimos started his football career at VfL Wangen before joining
VfB Stuttgart Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's football team is currently part of Germany's first division, the Bundesliga. VfB Stu ...
's youth system at the age of seven. Having progressed through the clubs' youth ranks, he then made his debut for VfB Stuttgart II on 25 February 2012 in a 1–0 loss to
1. FC Heidenheim 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 is a German association football club from the city of Heidenheim, Baden-Württemberg. History The current day club was formed in 2007 through the separation of the football section from parent association ''Heidenheimer ...
in
3. Liga The 3. Liga is a professional association football league and the third division in Germany. In the German football league system, it is positioned between the 2. Bundesliga and the fourth-tier Regionalliga. The modern 3. Liga was formed for t ...
. At the end of the season he signed his first professional contract with the club, penning a deal until June 2015. Two years later, he extended his contract with VfB until June 2017. Having made over 50 appearances for VfB Stuttgart II, Vlachodimos was afforded his
Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...
debut against
Eintracht Frankfurt Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The team is currently playing in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the Germa ...
on 29 August 2015. With back-up 'keeper
Mitchell Langerak Mitchell James Langerak ( ; born 22 August 1988) is an Australian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for J1 League club Nagoya Grampus. Club career Melbourne Victory Langerak signed his first professional contract in February 20 ...
out injured, Vlachodimos was included in Stuttgart's match day squad and was brought on as a substitute following the
sending off In sports, an ejection (also known as dismissal, sending-off, disqualification, or early shower) is the removal of a participant from a contest due to a violation of the sport's rules. The exact violations that lead to an ejection vary depending ...
of first-choice goalkeeper
Przemysław Tytoń Przemysław Tytoń (; born 4 January 1987) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Eredivisie club Twente. Club career Born in Zamość, Tytoń played for Górnik Łęczna until the end of the 2006–07 season when th ...
. He made three appearances in total for the senior side but by the end of 2015 had fallen out of favour of new club
manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...
, and former VfB Stuttgart II coach, Jürgen Kramny. Vlachodimos voiced his disapproval of the situation in an interview with German new publication '' Kicker'' in December and the following month joined Greek
Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...
side
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 ...
where he was reunited with his brother, Panagiotis, who had joined the club earlier in the month.


Panathinaikos

On 26 January 2016, Stuttgart announced that Vlachodimos had completed a transfer to Panathinaikos. As part of the transfer, the full value of which remained undisclosed, it was agreed that Stuttgart would retain a 30% sell-on clause on Vlachodimos. He was handed his debut for the club on 3 April by manager Andrea Stramaccioni, and started in a 3–2 home win against Veria in the league. Having spent the majority of the first half of the following season behind regular 'keeper Luke Steele, Vlachodimos was handed his second start on 27 November and was named
man of the match In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...
for his performance in a 1–1 draw against
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'') ...
. He started again the following week and kept his first
clean sheet In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...
for the club in a 1–0 win over PAOK. On 17 May, Vlachodimos was sent off in a play-off match against the same opposition for a spot in the following season's Champions League. PAOK's
Amr Warda Amr Medhat Mohsen Warda ( arz, عمرو مدحت محسن وردة; born 17 September 1993) is an Egyptian professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder. Club career Panetolikos On 22 August 2015, Warda signed a three-y ...
was dismissed minutes later before a brawl in the second half saw two more players sent off. During the incident, PAOK manager
Vladimir Ivić Vladimir Ivić (; born 7 May 1977) is a Serbian football manager and former player who is currently head coach of Krasnodar. A former Serbia and Montenegro international, Ivić is best remembered for his time with Partizan and PAOK at club le ...
was struck by a beer can thrown from the Panathinaikos crowd and required treatment, ultimately resulting in the match being abandoned.


Benfica

On 18 May 2018, Vlachodimos signed a five-year contract with Portuguese side S.L. Benfica. After he arrived in
Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...
, fellow teammate Bruno Varela seemed to be the first-choice goalkeeper for the 2018–19 season, but Vlachodimos' overall performance in the pre-season convinced manager
Rui Vitória Rui Carlos Pinho da Vitória (; born 16 April 1970) is a Portuguese football manager and a former player who played as a midfielder. He is the manager of the Egypt national football team. He most notably spent three and a half years with Benf ...
to promote him to the starting spot. That season, Vlachodimos was included in
UEFA Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
's Champions League breakthrough team of 2018 for making a "string of impressive saves" and being "one of Benfica's brightest sparks in a testing group stage campaign". On 3 February 2019, after 20 consecutive appearances with the club in
Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal, ...
, he faced a red card as the last player for a foul committed to
Bas Dost Bas Dost (; born 31 May 1989) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a forward for Eredivisie club FC Utrecht. Having begun his career at FC Emmen in the Eerste Divisie, Dost later played in the Eredivisie for Heracles Almelo and SC ...
in a 4–2 away win over Lisbon rivals Sporting CP. Two weeks later, in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League round of 32 match against Galatasaray, Vlachodimos made a crucial save in the 85th minute to deny Christian Luyindama the equalizer, helping Benfica secure their first win in Turkey (2–1). He was elected
Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal, ...
's Goalkeeper of the Month for February. During that month, he competed in four league matches, conceding two goals as Benfica defeated Sporting,
Nacional Nacional, the Portuguese and Spanish word for "national", may refer to: Airlines * Nacional Transportes Aéreos, a Brazilian airline defunct in 2002 * Transportes Aéreos Nacional, a Brazilian airline defunct in 1961 Bank * Banco Nacional, a ...
(10–0), Desportivo das Aves (3–0) and Chaves (4–0). Moreover, he also helped his team eliminate Galatasaray 2–1 on aggregate in
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 ...
's Round of 32. Vlachodimos started the 2019–20 season again as a first-choice. On 29 August 2019, he extended his contract with Benfica until 2023, setting an annual salary of €1.2 million. On 5 November 2019, Vlachodimos has been at his best in the Portuguese Primeira Liga for Benfica, recording eight clean sheets in the opening 10 matches of the season. Overall, if we take all competitions during 2019 into account, Vlachodimos participated in 46 matches for Benfica, recording an impressive 21 clean sheets. Only
Jan Oblak Jan Oblak (born 7 January 1993) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and captains the Slovenia national team. He is frequently ranked as one of the best goalkeepers in the world. Ob ...
(24) and
Marco Bizot Marco may refer to: People * Marco (given name), people with the given name Marco * Marco (actor) (born 1977), South Korean model and actor * Georg Marco (1863–1923), Romanian chess player of German origin * Tomás Marco (born 1942), Spanish co ...
(29) gained more shutouts, while
Marc-André ter Stegen Marc-André ter Stegen ( ; born 30 April 1992) is a German professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Barcelona and the Germany national team. Regarded as a highly promising player in his youth, he has since established ...
also tallied 24 clean sheets. On 5 October 2020, with the save of two consecutive penalty kicks from
Ryan Gauld Ryan Stewart Gauld (born 16 December 1995) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Major League Soccer club Vancouver Whitecaps FC. He began his professional career at Dundee United, where he helped them ...
helped his team prevail over
S.C. Farense Sporting Clube Farense, simply known as Farense, is a Portuguese professional football club based in Faro in the district of the same name and the region of Algarve. Founded in 1910, the club will play the 2021–22 season in the Liga Portugal ...
with a score of 3-2 achieving the third victory in an equal number of matches in the beginning of the 2020-21 season. As a conclusion this
season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...
was a reality check for the 27-year-old as he played as a second fiddle to Helton Leite for most of the campaign. He has, however, regained his form and put up some excellent displays in the 2021-22 season. On 26 August 2021, Benfica qualified for the UEFA Champions League group stage after defeating
PSV Eindhoven Philips Sport Vereniging (; en, Philips Sports Association ), abbreviated as PSV and internationally known as PSV Eindhoven (), is a Dutch sports club from Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is best known for its professional football department, whi ...
, a justification for the international Greek goalkeeper who in the summer was a step away from "Da Luz". On 4 November 2021, although he conceded five goals in the 5-2 defeat to
FC Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which play ...
, Vlachodimos is included in the top 11 of the 4th matchday 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 ...
. On beginning of December 2021,
Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
are reportedly interested in signing highly coveted Benfica goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos. According to the Portuguese outlet ''O Jogo'', Benfica could be battling to keep hold of their star goalkeeper with Newcastle United eyeing a January swoop for the Greek international. The Magpies have identified the 27-year-old as a top target and want to open discussions with the Portuguese giants in the coming weeks ahead of the January transfer window. On 26 January 2022, the Portuguese press praised Vlachodimos for his performance in the victory of Benfica over
Boavista F.C. Boavista Futebol Clube, commonly known as Boavista (), is a Portuguese sports club from the city of Porto. Founded on 1 August 1903 by British entrepreneurs and Portuguese textile workers (thus the "FC" being appended – the British way as oppos ...
in the 2021–22 Taça da Liga final, where the Greek goalkeeper was voted
man of the match In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...
. Benfica were led to the penalty shootout with Boavista (1–1 in the regular game), where they prevailed 3–2, with the 27-year-old goalkeeper repelling three of the five penalties. In fact, this was the first participation of the Greek international in the tournament, while he is in Portugal, while he reached a total of 150 appearances with the Benfica jersey.


International career


German national youth teams

Vlachodimos represented
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
at various youth levels. His first experience with the national team came on 21 May 2009 when he made his debut for the U15's in a 2–0 win over the United States. He made one more appearance for the U15's against Poland the following month before making his U16 debut in August, starting in a 4–2 win over Switzerland in new manager
Steffen Freund Steffen Freund (born 19 January 1970) is a German former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder in both the German and English top flights. He was capped 21 times for his country and played a significant part in Germany's ...
's first match in charge at the 2009 U16 Tournament in Liechteinstein. Vlachodimos featured regularly throughout the tournament as Germany claimed the title, beating Austria 6–2 in the final. Two years later, Vlachodimos helped Germany to a runners-up finish at the
2011 UEFA European Under-17 Championship The 2011 UEFA European Under-17 Championship was the tenth edition of UEFA's European Under-17 Football Championship. Serbia hosted the tournament between the 3 and 15 May. 6 Teams also qualified for the 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Players born aft ...
where they ultimately lost 5–2 to the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
in the final. Soon after the tournament he was awarded the bronze U17 Fritz Walter Medal, awarded to the third best German under-17 player. Later in the year, he was part of the Germany squad which ended third at the
2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup The 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the fourteenth tournament of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, and the eleventh played since the change in age limits from under 16s to Under 17s in 1991. It was held in Mexico with games being played amongst various venues ...
. He made his debut for the U18 side in February 2012 before advancing to the U19 side in August. He then made his U20 debut on 12 October the following year against the Netherlands. On 15 March 2017, following his emergence as
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 ...
' first-choice goalkeeper, Vlachodimos was called up by Stefan Kuntz to the U21 side for
friendly Friendly may refer to: Places * Friendly, West Yorkshire, a settlement in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England * Friendly, Maryland, an unincorporated community in the United States * Friendly, Eugene, Oregon, a neighborhood in the United States * ...
matches against
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
. He was voted man of the match for his performance during Germany's 1–0 defeat against Portugal, despite the defeat being the nation's first home loss in 32 matches. Vlachodimos' strong performances at club with Panathinaikos saw him selected in Stefan Kuntz's squad for the 2017 UEFA European U21 final tournament in Poland. Germany were ultimately crowned champions, beating
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
1–0 in the final to claim the title.


Greece

On 9 November 2018, four days after
FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
's approval of Vlachodimos' request to play for
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
, he was called up by
Angelos Anastasiadis Angelos Anastasiadis (; born 8 March 1953) is a Greek football manager and former international footballer. He previously coached numerous clubs in Greece including PAOK, Panathinaikos, Platanias and PAS Giannina as well as the Greece and Cyp ...
for the matches against
Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
and
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
in the
UEFA Nations League The UEFA Nations League is a biennial international football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the member associations of UEFA, the sport's European governing body. The first tournament began in September 2018. The ...
. He debuted for Greece in a 1–0 win over Finland on 15 November that year.


Career statistics


Club


International


Honours

BenficaProfile at Soccerway
/ref> *
Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal, ...
: 2018–19 * Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira:
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
Germany U21 *
UEFA European Under-21 Championship The UEFA European Under-21 Championship, the UEFA Under-21 Championship or simply the Euro Under-21, is a biennial football competition contested by the European men's under-21 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Since 1992, the compe ...
:
2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
Individual * Fritz Walter Medal U17 Bronze: 2011 Individual *
Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal, ...
Goalkeeper of the Month: February 2019, September 2022 * Primeira Liga Player Fair-Play Prize: 2021–22


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vlachodimos, Odysseas 1994 births Living people Footballers from Stuttgart Association football goalkeepers Citizens of Greece through descent Greek footballers Greece international footballers German footballers Germany youth international footballers Germany under-21 international footballers German people of Greek descent Sportspeople of Greek descent VfB Stuttgart II players VfB Stuttgart players Panathinaikos F.C. players S.L. Benfica footballers 3. Liga players Bundesliga players Super League Greece players Primeira Liga players Greek expatriate footballers Greek expatriate sportspeople in Portugal German expatriate footballers German expatriate sportspeople in Portugal