Antonios Nikopolidis
Encyclopedia
Antonios Nikopolidis is a former Greek
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

 football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 player, that played as goalkeeper. He's regarded as the best Greek goalkeeper of all time having been awarded the most caps in the national team and playing an integral part in the UEFA Euro 2004 triumph.

The first years and the move to Panathinaikos

Nikopolidis made his first steps at his local team of Anagennisi Artas, from which he was transferred to Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos FC
Panathinaikos Football Club is a Greek professional football club based in Athens. Founded in 1908, they play in the Super League Greece and are one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Greek football history. They have won 20 Greek Championships and 17 Greek Cups.Panathinaikos is the most...

 in the summer of 1989, where he was a back-up for Józef Wandzik
Józef Wandzik
Józef Wandzik is a former Polish association football player, in the goalkeeper position. He was born in Tarnowskie Góry....

. He made his debut during the 1990–91 season in a match against his current club, Olympiacos. In 1995 he played five games as Panathinaikos won the championship and three as they retained it the following year. However, it wasn't until the 1997–98 season that he established himself as a regular goalkeeper at the age of 26. In the 2002 Champions league
UEFA Champions League 2001-02
The 2001–02 UEFA Champions League was the tenth season of UEFA's premier club football tournament, the UEFA Champions League, since its rebranding from the European Cup in 1992. The tournament was won by Real Madrid, who beat Bayer Leverkusen in the final to claim their ninth European Cup title...

, he helped the club reach the quarter-finals but, in the 2003–04 season, he lost his place to Konstantinos Chalkias
Konstantinos Chalkias
Konstantinos "Kostas" Chalkias is a Greek footballer, born 30 May 1974 in Larissa, Greece. He stands 2.00 m tall and plays in the goalkeeper position. He currently plays for PAOK F.C..-Greece:...

 when his contract negotiations broke down.

Panathinaikos offered him
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...

400K per year which, although a pay-rise, he thought was not in line with his contributions to the team over the past 15 years nor with his current market value. As he did not immediately accept the offer the management became suspicious and decided to relegate him to the bench for the rest of the 2003–04 season. The Greek sports media and Panathinaikos fans at first took his side in the conflict and criticised president Vardinogiannis.

Just before UEFA Euro 2004, rumours were circulating that Nikopolidis had been approached by arch-rivals Olympiacos. It was discovered later that he had signed an agreement just before the tournament begun earning him
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...

600K per year for three years. After that, the fans' disappointment in him was displayed during the celebrations following the team's 2003–04 season double when Nikopolidis, while raising the trophy, was booed by the majority of the crowd.

From Panathinaikos to Olympiacos

Soon after being instrumental in UEFA Euro 2004 helping Greece
Greece national football team
The Greece national football team represents Greece in association football and is controlled by the Hellenic Football Federation, the governing body for football in Greece. Greece's home ground is Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus and their head coach is Fernando Santos...

 to lift the trophy, Nikopolidis joined Olympiacos F.C. making an immediate impact for his once rival team. Keeping a clean sheet in the first derby against his former club in the process, he went on to win two Doubles
The Double
The Double is a term in association football which refers to winning a country's top tier division and its primary cup competition in the same season...

 in a row, making him the only Greek player to win three consecutive doubles with two different clubs.

At his new team, Nikopolidis also earned a reputation for making game-winning saves in the most important games. Displaying his penalty
Penalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...

-saving abilities, Nikopolidis saved three penalty kicks against Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...

, Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...

, and Rosenborg BK, making him undefeated from the penalty spot in UEFA Champions League football in the Olympiacos shirt. In the 2007–08 season
2007-08 in Greek football
-Coaches:Below is the list of coaches who left their teams after the start of the season.-Third Qualifying Round:* AEK'-Group Stage:* Olympiacos...

, he also equaled the Greek league record for the most penalty kicks saved in one season, which included saves against PAOK and former club Panathinaikos. Nikopolidis announced his plans to retire at the end of the 2009–10 season.


However, he took back his decision to stop his career after Socrates Kokkalis's insistence. The veteran goalkeeper stated that he would delay his retirement for one more year, to retire as champion. He signed an extension on June 16 that will keep him at Olympiacos for the 2010–11 season.

He also took part in the international match "8th Match Against Poverty", in 14 December 2010, in G. Karaiskakis Stadium
Karaiskakis Stadium
Karaiskakis Stadium is in the Neo Faliro area of Piraeus, Greece. It is the home ground of Olympiacos F.C. and is named after Georgios Karaiskakis , hero of the Greek War of Independence, who was mortally wounded near the area....

 in Greece, as the UNDP team's goalkeeper.


In January 2011, IFFHS released a list with the best goalkeepers of the first decade, and Nikopolidis was in. He is also in the list with the best goalkeepers of the years 1987-2011.


At 20 March 2011, Olympiacos won the championship, in a 6-0 win against city rivals AEK Athens F.C., in G. Karaiskakis Stadium
Karaiskakis Stadium
Karaiskakis Stadium is in the Neo Faliro area of Piraeus, Greece. It is the home ground of Olympiacos F.C. and is named after Georgios Karaiskakis , hero of the Greek War of Independence, who was mortally wounded near the area....

.


He made his final appearance on 17 April 2011 in a home 6-0 victory against Larissa F.C. in G. Karaiskakis Stadium
Karaiskakis Stadium
Karaiskakis Stadium is in the Neo Faliro area of Piraeus, Greece. It is the home ground of Olympiacos F.C. and is named after Georgios Karaiskakis , hero of the Greek War of Independence, who was mortally wounded near the area....

. As a final curtain call, he was replaced by Balazs Megyeri
Balázs Megyeri
Balázs Megyeri is a Hungarian football player who currently plays for Olympiacos F.C. as a goalkeeper.-Career:...

 in the last minutes, so he could wave goodbye to the Olympiacos fans.


As the Olympiacos Captain, he was the player to accept the championship trophy, after the match.

Greek national team

He made his debut for the Greece national football team
Greece national football team
The Greece national football team represents Greece in association football and is controlled by the Hellenic Football Federation, the governing body for football in Greece. Greece's home ground is Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus and their head coach is Fernando Santos...

 on 18 August 1999 against El Salvador
El Salvador national football team
El Salvador's national football team represents El Salvador in international football and is sanctioned by the Federación Salvadoreña de Fútbol . In 1899, Santa Ana and San Salvador met for the first hosted football game in El Salvador...

.

He played in the qualifying rounds of the 2002 FIFA World Cup
2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)
Listed below are the dates and results for the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the European zone . For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification....

 and Euro 2004 where he excelled as Greece qualified for the finals. Nikopolidis was one of the cornerstones of the Greek win in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

, where he kept six clean sheets and did not let in a goal in the three knockout games as he claimed a winners' medal. He also earned a place in the All-Star Squad, and was voted goalkeeper of the Euro 2004 All Star team.

He became team captain after the retirement of Theodoros Zagorakis
Theodoros Zagorakis
-Kavala:Zagorakis was a defensive midfielder who usually operated on the right hand side of midfield. He started his career with Kavala, the club that also produced Zisis Vryzas, with whom he became close friends...

.

He has featured in a World XI game in 2002, a rare honour for a Greek player.

Nikopolidis is first among all goalkeepers in the history of the national team with the most caps (90 after his retirement).

On 15 June 2008, Nikopolidis announced his retirement from international football after Euro 2008, claiming that he had made this decision before the tournament started, and also stating that it is about time for a major change in the Greek national squad.

Trivia

Due to his grey hair, Nikopolidis bears a striking resemblance to Hollywood actor George Clooney
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. For his work as an actor, he has received two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award...

 and earned the nickname "George Clooney" from European media during the Euro 2004 competition..

Career statistics

Final Statistics
|-
|1987–88||rowspan="2"|Anagennisi Arta
Anagennisi Arta F.C.
Anagennisi Artas is a Greek football club, based in Arta,in the North-West part of Greece. The emblem of the team depicts the historical bridge of Arta. The club was established in 1960 from the union between local Arta clubs Panambrakikos, Aetosand Olympiacos. The colours of club are BLACK-WHITE....

||rowspan="2"|Football League 2||16||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1988–89||33||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1989–90
Alpha Ethniki 1989-90
Alpha Ethniki 1989-90 complete season-Standings:Pts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;*Notes...

||rowspan="15"|Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos FC
Panathinaikos Football Club is a Greek professional football club based in Athens. Founded in 1908, they play in the Super League Greece and are one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Greek football history. They have won 20 Greek Championships and 17 Greek Cups.Panathinaikos is the most...

||rowspan="15"|Super League
Super League Greece
The Superleague Greece is the highest professional football league in Greece. It was formed on July 16, 2006 and replaced Alpha Ethniki at the top of the Greek football league system. The league consists of 16 teams and runs from August to May, with teams playing 30 games each...

||5||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1990–91
Alpha Ethniki 1990-91
-Standings:' : Cup winner 1990-91' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;*Notes-Match table:Match changes:* * * *...

||0||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991–92
Alpha Ethniki 1991-92
-Standings:' : Cup winner 1991-92' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;-Match table:-External links:* * * *...

||0||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992–93
Alpha Ethniki 1992-93
-Standings:' : Cup winner 1992-93' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;-Match table:-External links:* * * *...

||0||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94
Alpha Ethniki 1993-94
-Standings:' : Cup winner 1993-94' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;-Match table:-External links:* * * *...

||0||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95
Alpha Ethniki 1994-95
-Standings:' : Cup winner 1994-95' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;-Match table:-External links:* * * *...

||5||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96
Alpha Ethniki 1995-96
-Standings:' : Cup winner 1995-96' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;*NotesPAOK had -3 points-Match table:Match changes:-External links:* * * *...

||3||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996–97
Alpha Ethniki 1996-97
-Standings:' : Cup winner 1996-97' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;*NotesAris had -3 points-Match table:Match changes:-External links:* * * *...

||7||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997–98
Alpha Ethniki 1997-98
- Standings :' : Cup winner 1997-98' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;- Match table :- External links :* * * *...

||25||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1998–99
Alpha Ethniki 1998-99
-Standings:' : Cup winner 1998-99' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;-Match table:*Notes-External links:* * * *...

||19||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1999-00
Alpha Ethniki 1999-2000
- Standings :' : Cup winner 1999-2000' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;- Match table :-UEFA Cup Places:AEK qualified through the Cup, the 3rd...

||28||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2000–01
Alpha Ethniki 2000-01
-Standings:' : Cup winner 2000-01' : Title holder' : Promoted from Beta EthnikiPts = Points Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference;-Match table:-Play off:Relegation-External links:* * * *...

||25||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2001–02
Alpha Ethniki 2001-02
-League Standings:Champions: Olympiacos Piraeus. Cup Winners: AEK Athens FC.- References :* * * *...

||26||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2002–03
Alpha Ethniki 2002-03
The Alpha Ethiniki 2002–03 season was the 44th in its history and was won by Olympiacos, their 32nd league title. Olympiacos and Panathinaikos finished the League with the same points total but Olympiacos were crowned champions due to more favourable results between the two teams...

||28||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2003–04
Alpha Ethniki 2003-04
-League Standings:-Promotion/Relegation Play-Off:Played at a neutral venue , between the 14th-place team in the Alpha Ethniki and the 3rd-place team in the Beta Ethniki.Ergotelis replace Akratitos in Alpha Ethniki...

||18||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004–05
Alpha Ethniki 2004-05
-League standings:* NB:Olympiakos and Panionios originally both had 3 points deducted as punishment for the incidents before their match on Jan 9 but these deductions were cancelled on appeal.- References :* * * *...

||rowspan="7"|Olympiacos||rowspan="7"|Super League
Super League Greece
The Superleague Greece is the highest professional football league in Greece. It was formed on July 16, 2006 and replaced Alpha Ethniki at the top of the Greek football league system. The league consists of 16 teams and runs from August to May, with teams playing 30 games each...

||29||0||6||0||||||10||0||45||0
|-
|2005–06||29||0||7||0||||||5||0||41||0
|-
|2006–07||28||0||2||0||||||6||0||36||0
|-
|2007–08
Super League Greece 2007-08
2007-08 was the second season of the Super League's, and started on September 1, 2007. The defending champions were Olympiacos. Asteras Tripolis, Veria and Levadiakos were promoted from Beta Ethniki in the previous season.-Postponement:...

||28||0||3||0||||||8||0||39||0
|-
|2008–09
Super League Greece 2008-09
-League table :||rowspan=8 style="background-color:white;"|-Results:...

||28||0||7||2||||||6||0||41||2
|-
|2009–10||32||0||0||0||||||12||0||44||0
|-
|2010–11||6||0||3||0||||||3||0||12||0
|-
414||0||||||||||||||||
414||0||||||||||||||||

Honours

Panathinaikos
  • Greek Championship: 1990, 1991, 1995, 1996, 2004
  • Greek Cup
    Greek football Cup
    The Greek Football Cup , commonly known as the Greek Cup or for sponsorship reasons the Football Cup OPAP, is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation....

    : 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2004
  • Greek Super Cup
    Greek Super Cup
    -Official edition:-External links:*...

    : 1993, 1994


Olympiacos F.C.
  • Greek Championship: 2005 , 2006 , 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011
  • Greek Cup
    Greek football Cup
    The Greek Football Cup , commonly known as the Greek Cup or for sponsorship reasons the Football Cup OPAP, is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation....

    : 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009
  • Greek Super Cup
    Greek Super Cup
    -Official edition:-External links:*...

    : 2007


Greece
Greece national football team
The Greece national football team represents Greece in association football and is controlled by the Hellenic Football Federation, the governing body for football in Greece. Greece's home ground is Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus and their head coach is Fernando Santos...

  • European Championship
    UEFA European Football Championship
    The UEFA European Football Championship is the main football competition of the men's national football teams governed by UEFA . Held every four years since 1960, in the even-numbered year between World Cup tournaments, it was originally called the UEFA European Nations Cup, changing to the current...

    : 2004
    2004 UEFA European Football Championship
    The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, better known as Euro 2004, was the 12th European Football Championship, a quadrennial football tournament for European national teams. It was hosted in Portugal, for the first time, between 12 June and 4 July 2004, following its selection by UEFA, in...



Individual
  • Greek Best Goalkeeper: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009


Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos FC
Panathinaikos Football Club is a Greek professional football club based in Athens. Founded in 1908, they play in the Super League Greece and are one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Greek football history. They have won 20 Greek Championships and 17 Greek Cups.Panathinaikos is the most...

  • Greek Cup: Runners up 1998–99


Olympiacos F.C.
  • Greek Championship: Runners up 2009-10


Greece
Greece national football team
The Greece national football team represents Greece in association football and is controlled by the Hellenic Football Federation, the governing body for football in Greece. Greece's home ground is Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus and their head coach is Fernando Santos...

  • European Championship 2004
    2004 UEFA European Football Championship
    The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, better known as Euro 2004, was the 12th European Football Championship, a quadrennial football tournament for European national teams. It was hosted in Portugal, for the first time, between 12 June and 4 July 2004, following its selection by UEFA, in...

    : UEFA Team of the Tournament Member
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