Giorgos Karagounis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Karagounis | ||
 |
||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Giorgos Karagounis | |
| Date of birth | March 6, 1977 (age 30) | |
| Place of birth |  Pirgos, Greece |
|
| Height | 172 cm (5'7") | |
| Nickname | Kara, Typara | |
| Playing position | Midfielder | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club |  SL Benfica |
|
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1995-1996 1996-1998 1998-2003 2003-2005 2005-present |
Panathinaikos Apollon Smyrnis Panathinaikos Inter Milan SL Benfica |
0 (0) 55 (9) 118 (25) 32 (3) 38 (2) |
| National team2 | ||
| 2001–present | Greece |
53 (4) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
Giorgos Karagounis (Greek: Γιώργος Καραγκούνης; born March 6, 1977, in Pirgos, Greece) is a midfielder for SL Benfica and Greece. He scored the first goal in Greece's surprising win over Portugal in the 2004 European Football Championship.
For many football supporters in his homeland, Georgios Karagounis represents everything that is good about the modern Greek game. His rugged style of play has earned him comparisons with legendary Greek midfield player Mimis Domazos.
Contents |
[edit] Clubs
He joined Panathinaikos FC as a youngster but was allowed to leave for Apollon Smirnis FC, where he was a regular scorer over two seasons before returning to the Athens club, where he was a fixture in the senior team for the next five years. Although Panthinaikos did not win an Alpha Ethniki title during these years, the team was always a contender, and it had good runs in the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Cup, and Karagounis scored some big goals for the team. He scored six times in 24 Alpha Ethniki games in his first season back with the Greens and in 2000/01 he appeared in all 12 of Panathanaikos' UEFA Champions League games, scoring a memorable goal from a direct free-kick against Manchester United FC at Old Trafford.
[edit] Free-Kick expert
Giorgos or the Grego as the fans call him at Benfica is a fine taker of free-kicks, Karagounis usually takes Free-Kicks for Greece and Benfica. He is also a fine tackler known for his tackling abilities.
[edit] World Class
After Panathinaikos missed out on the Greek championship to Olympiacos CFP by virtue of an inferior head-to-head record in 2003, Karagounis opted for a move to FC Internazionale Milano in summer 2003. Karagounis played a pivotal part for Inter Milan where he played in all European fixtures, and his performance in Euro 2004 had improved his standing in the team for next year. He scored the first goal of this tournament (Euro 2004) against Portugal, helping Greece to win by 2-1, but was suspended as the hosts were beaten again in the final. In 2005, he moved to Portugal to play for SL Benfica based at Estádio da Luz, precisely the same stadium where he won the Euro 2004 final for Greece. Karagounis said; " I like Benfica it's such a big club and I am honoured that they have great fate in me im sure that my fellow Greeks are happy about my move here at Benfica". On July 2006 Karagounis scored a magnificent chip shot right out of the 18 yard line against FC Shakhtar Donetsk this gave Benfica a 2-0 win. Karagounis is rumored to come back to his native Greece, to a club he has never been a part of, AEK Athens FC. Wherever this gifted player chooses tp go, the future looks promising.
[edit] National Team
Karagounis captained Greece's entry to the 1998 UEFA Under-21 Championship, and the team came very close to winning, losing 1-0 to Spain in the final. After that, Karagounis soon became a regular on the national team. He has earned 34 caps so far in his career, and he has scored 4 goals as a player on the national team. He made his first full international appearance against El Salvador in 1999 and went on to appear in qualifying for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. After he won with his national team the Euro2004, Karagounis continued to play on regular basis for Greece both in the 2006 World Cup qualifying campaign and in the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup.
[edit] External links
- Giorgos Karagounis Tactical Formations at Football-Lineups.com
|
Greece squad - UEFA EURO 2004 Champions | |
|---|---|---|
|
1 Nikopolidis | 2 Giourkas | 3 Venetidis | 4 Dabizas | 5 Dellas | 6 Basinas | 7 Zagorakis | 8 Giannakopoulos | 9 Charisteas | 10 Tsiartas | 11 Nikolaidis | 12 Chalkias | 13 Katergiannakis | 14 Fyssas | 15 Vryzas | 16 Kafes | 17 Georgiadis | 18 Goumas | 19 Kapsis | 20 Karagounis | 21 Katsouranis | 22 Papadopoulos | 23 Lakis | Coach: Rehhagel |
||
| SL Benfica - Current Squad |
|---|
|
1 Moreira | 2 P. Correia | 3 Anderson | 4 Luisão | 5 Léo | 6 Petit | 7 M. Ferreira | 8 Katsouranis | 9 Mantorras | 10 Rui Costa | 11 Miguelito | 12 Quim | 15 P. Jorge | 16 Beto | 18 Manú | 20 Simão | 21 Nuno Gomes | 22 Nelson | 23 David Luiz | 25 N. Assis | 26 Karagounis | 27 Derlei | 28 J. Coimbra | 30 Miccoli | 31 Moretto | Manager: Fernando Santos |
Categories: 1977 births | Living people | Greek footballers | Football (soccer) midfielders | Serie A players | Internazionale players | Apollon Smyrnis footballers | Non-Italian football players in Italy | Benfica players | Panathinaikos footballers | UEFA Euro 2004 players | UEFA European Football Championship-winning players | Portuguese Liga footballers | Greece international footballers
