Four Greek players who have participated in World Cups (2010 or 2014) have just one day left to decide the next stop in their career. The official deadline for free agent transfers (players whose contracts have expired and don’t belong to a team) is today and these are our four protagonists:
Giorgos Karagounis
The contract of the Greek captain, with 139 games under his belt, expired in June after two years in the Premier League wearing the Fulham jersey. According to rumors, Panathinaikos, for whom he had been an emblematic figure during seasons 1998-2003 and 2007-2012 approached him for a last-minute contract but their offer was not good enough. Karagounis still has a lot to offer even at the age of 37 and that was apparent during the World Cup in Brazil a few months ago, where he accumulated more kilometers per minute than anyone else.
Kostas Katsouranis
The most controversial figure in Greek football has one day left before he decides in which club to continue next year. The Greek international was sent off during Greece’s game against Japan in the 2014 FIFA World Cup, turning the entire nation against him. Although his personality is smashed down by the media, it turns out that most of his teammates look up to him. After all, he’s one of the best all-around footballers Greece has seen in years. Eight years have passed since he last wore the yellow and black kit of AEK Athens and it seems he’ll be doing the same this year to help them return to the first division.
Sotiris Ninis
The two greatest talents of the 00’s for the midfield position have been Sotiris Ninis and Giannis Fetfatzidis. The latter has a promising career ahead of him at Genoa, in Italy, but the former struggled to unwrap his charisma at Italian side Parma who eventually released him. He was once dubbed the Greek Messi, as he wowed crowds with his earlier performances, especially the two against AS Roma for the UEFA Europa League in 2012. After knee and ab surgeries, he will need to climb a mountain to get back to the state he once was, but even at this level, he still has enough offers to choose from. The only problem is that none of these offers are from top-notch teams.
Michalis Sifakis
Being named Greek Super League’s best goalkeeper in 2010 and 2011 seems so far away for Michalis Sifakis. He carried the Greek national team to the quarter-finals of the Euro 2012 until the elimination by Germany and grabbed a strong contract with Belgian side Charleroi. After missing out most of the season, he then signed for Atromitos of Athens in 2013, which seemed like a healthy place to restart his career. However, mid-season in, he lost his starting place to Luigi Cennamo and therefore decided to terminate his contract a few months ago. He is still in search of a club.
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