Theodoros ZagorakisTheodoros Zagorakis ' onMouseout='HidePop("22369")' href="http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Greece">Greek
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
footballer. He was the captain of the
Greece national football teamThe 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...
that won the
2004 UEFA European Football ChampionshipThe 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...
, and is the current president of PAOK F.C..
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 VryzasZisis Vryzas is a former football player, and had been the vice president of PAOK FC for the past 3 years. He was born 9 November 1973 in Kavala, city of northern Greece, located in the region of Macedonia . He played as a striker for various teams in Greece and abroad, as well as the Greek...
, with whom he became close friends. Zagorakis was crucial in helping Kavala win promotion to the Greek second division.
PAOK
In the
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:* * * *...
season, Zagorakis left Kavala as a winter transfer to join PAOK, part of a string of star-transfers made that season. He played for PAOK until December 1997, and also captained the squad in his last two seasons. He rose to become an iconic figure for the fans.
Leicester City
Zagorakis left in another winter transfer window to
Leicester CityLeicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
. While in
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, he took part in two consecutive
League CupThe Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
finals at Wembley Stadium, losing the first against
Tottenham HotspurTottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
in
1999The 1999 Worthington Cup Final was played between Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City, at Wembley on Sunday 21 March 1999. Tottenham won the game, and their third League Cup, with an injury-time diving header from Allan Nielsen...
and defeating
Tranmere RoversTranmere Rovers Football Club are an English team based in Birkenhead, Wirral. The club currently compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system...
in
the secondThe 2000 Worthington Cup Final was played between Leicester City, in their third final appearance in four years, and First Division side Tranmere Rovers at Wembley on 27 February 2000...
. Nevertheless, he was disappointed with
Martin O'NeillMartin Hugh Michael O'Neill, OBE, is a Northern Irish football manager and former player.Until resigning the post on 9 August 2010, he was manager of Aston Villa. Starting his career in his native Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playing career with Nottingham...
's reluctance to use him regularly and decided to return to Greece.
AEK Athens
He moved to
AthensAthens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
based football club of AEK Athens, and played alongside fellow countrymen such as
Michalis KapsisMichalis Kapsis is a Greek football player who currently plays for Ethnikos Piraeus F.C.. Kapsis played for the Greek national football team at the position of central defender...
,
Vassilis LakisVasilis Lakis is a Greek footballer and he was named "Turbo" for his speed on the attacking wing and making great cross in the area for the strikers.-FAS Naussa:...
,
Demis NikolaidisThemistoklis "Demis" Nikolaidis was the forty second president of AEK Athens F.C., and is considered one of the finest footballers Greece has ever produced. In his early childhood and teenage years he lived in the city of Alexandroupoli, in the north-east part of Greece...
and Vassilios Tsiartas. With AEK, Zagorakis won the
Greek CupThe 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....
in 2002 against rivals Olympiacos.
Bologna
On 14 July 2004, he left AEK Athens for
BolognaBologna Football Club 1909, known simply as Bologna, is an Italian Football League club based in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, formed in 1993. The club are nicknamed the rossoblù because of the red and blue striped shirts they wear. Red and Blue are the official colours of the town.During its history...
, signing a two-year contract worth €1.5 million per year. In
Serie A's seasonIn the 2004–05 season, the Serie A, the highest professional football league in Italy, was composed of 20 teams for the first time in several years....
, Zagorakis was a regular feature in the team's squad but the team found itself relegated to
Serie BSerie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
after a play-out series against Parma FC. In the following summer he was released from the team as they couldn't afford his payroll under the new conditions.
PAOK
Zagorakis eventually signed a 2-year contract with PAOK for as little as €700000 a year. When Zagorakis landed at Makedonia Airport in
ThessalonikiThessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
, 7000 supporters were there to welcome him back. His return however coincided with a turbulent period, with the club many financial and administrative problems.
International career
Zagorakis received his first
capIn sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...
for
GreeceThe 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 7 September 1994, against the
Faroe IslandsThe Faroe Islands national football team represents the Faroe Islands in association football and is controlled by the Faroe Islands Football Association, the governing body for football in the Faroe Islands. The Faroe Islands became a member of FIFA in 1988 and UEFA in 1990 and are the third...
. He scored his first goal against
DenmarkThe Denmark national football team represents Denmark in association football and is controlled by the Danish Football Association , the governing body for the football clubs which are organized under DBU...
in 2006 World Cup qualifying, in
AthensAthens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, while earning his 101st cap. Numbering 120 caps, Zagorakis is Greece's
all-time leader in international games played, earning his 100th against
KazakhstanThe Kazakhstan national football team represents Kazakhstan in international men's association football and is directed by Football Federation of Kazakhstan. They split from the Soviet Union national football team after independence in 1991 and joined the Asian Football Confederation's Central and...
on 17 November 2004, and the team's longest-serving captain.
Zagorakis played an important role in Greece's win in the 2004 European Championships, and was named the Player of the Tournament by
UEFAThe Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
.
FIFAThe Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
named Zagorakis as a contender for the
2004 FIFA World Player of the YearThe 2004 FIFA World Player of the Year award was won by Brazilian Ronaldinho for the first time, Thierry Henry finished second for the second year in succession.-Men:-Women:...
award (he finished in 17th place), as well as UEFA named him for the
2004 European Footballer of the YearThe 2004 Ballon d'Or, given to the best football player in Europe as judged by a panel of sports journalists from UEFA member countries, was awarded to Andriy Shevchenko on 14 December 2004.Shevchenko was the first Ukrainian national to win the award...
award (he finished in the 5th place). He holds the record of most consecutive matches (57) (except one in 2006 because of injury) of the national team (due to either injury or not selection) since his first cap in a period of 12 years.
After fourteen full playing years as the captain for Greece, Zagorakis announced his retirement from international football on 5 October 2006. On 22 August 2007, however, he played for the last time with the national side, in a special friendly match against
SpainThe Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...
in
Toumba StadiumToumba Stadium is a football stadium in Thessaloniki, Greece, owned by the multisports club A.S. PAOK. It was built in 6 September 1959 as the club's prime sporting venue and served the home ground for the club's football team, which was participating in the then national football league. The...
, Salonica. He played for about 15 minutes and was then replaced by
Giannis Goumas-Career:Born on 24 May 1975 in the village of Ampelonas, near Larisa, he is one of the many players to emerge from Panathinaikos FC's youth academy and served the club for 15 years, debuting for the first team in 1994...
, receiving an applause by fans singing his name.
International goals
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1. |
9 February 2005 |
PiraeusPiraeus is a city in the region of Attica, Greece. Piraeus is located within the Athens Urban Area, 12 km southwest from its city center , and lies along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf....
, GreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
|
|
2–1 |
Win |
2006 FIFA World Cup qualifier Listed below are the dates and results for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for UEFA teams. A total of 51 teams took part, divided in 8 Groups - five groups of 6 teams each and three groups of 7 teams each - competing for 13 places in the World Cup...
|
| 2. |
21 January 2006 |
RiyadhRiyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of Riyadh Province, and belongs to the historical regions of Najd and Al-Yamama. It is situated in the center of the Arabian Peninsula on a large plateau, and is home to 5,254,560 people, and the urban center of a...
, Saudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
|
|
1–1 |
Draw |
Friendly Match An exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...
|
| 3. |
25 January 2006 |
RiyadhRiyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of Riyadh Province, and belongs to the historical regions of Najd and Al-Yamama. It is situated in the center of the Arabian Peninsula on a large plateau, and is home to 5,254,560 people, and the urban center of a...
, Saudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
|
|
1–1 |
Draw |
Friendly Match An exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...
|
PAOK Presidency
On 28 May 2007, after the fifth Greek Superleague All-Star Game, Zagorakis announced his retirement from professional football.
After many widespread rumours, it was announced that he was to become PAOK's new president, on June 18.
The club had been in dire financial straits for several years. Zagorakis undertook to sort out finances by attracting investors, increasing revenue and mobilizing the club's fan base. In his unifying first statement he said: "
The strength of PAOK lies in its supporters, its fans...I would have not made this decision" (to retire from playing and assume administration) "
if i did not love my club. The situation for PAOK is very difficult and I will not try to hide its problems; instead I will do all I can to solve the pressing financial issues.".
Soon he set about restructuring the club's debt and team, and recruited former teammmate
Zisis VryzasZisis Vryzas is a former football player, and had been the vice president of PAOK FC for the past 3 years. He was born 9 November 1973 in Kavala, city of northern Greece, located in the region of Macedonia . He played as a striker for various teams in Greece and abroad, as well as the Greek...
as technical director. As of late 2008, PAOK has been able to pay off most of its accumulated debt, seen a steady increase in ticket sales and advertising revenue, and team performance on the field has improved considerably, under the coaching of Portuguese manger
Fernando SantosFernando Manuel Fernandes da Costa Santos is a Portuguese football manager and former player. He is the current manager of the Greek national team, last managing PAOK of the Super League Greece....
.
On 15 December 2008, Zagorakis announced a major issue of new stock by the club, valued at 22.3 million euros. He appealed to small investors and stated that, although it is unlikely that the entire sum could be covered in a worldwide crisis environment, he felt confident that the expected influx of capital would enable PAOK finally to put its past problems behind and focus on future growth.
On 8 October 2009 Zagorakis surprised fans and press alike by announcing his decision to quit the presidency. In a short announcement on the club's official website, he cited that personal problems have led him to this decision. He was rapidly replaced by his close friend
Zisis VryzasZisis Vryzas is a former football player, and had been the vice president of PAOK FC for the past 3 years. He was born 9 November 1973 in Kavala, city of northern Greece, located in the region of Macedonia . He played as a striker for various teams in Greece and abroad, as well as the Greek...
.
Nevertheless, he kept close contact with his former associates, and also frequently attended the club's home games alongside Vryzas. Zagorakis finally changed his mind and on January 20 he reprised his position as president, with Vryzas stepping down to assume the post of vice president.
Personal life
- Zagorakis is married to former fashion model Joanna Lilli; they have two children, a boy and a girl.
- He wore number 7 for both the national team and clubs.
- He was featured on the cover of the Greek edition of FIFA 2001
FIFA, also known as FIFA Football or FIFA Soccer, is a series of association football video games, released annually by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports label...
.
Club
|-
|1988–89||rowspan="5"|Kavala||Beta Ethniki||8||2||?||?||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||8||2
|-
|1989–90||Gamma Ethniki||38||2||?||?||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||38||2
|-
|1990–91||rowspan="3"|Beta Ethniki||28||0||?||?||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||28||0
|-
|1991–92||32||2||?||?||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||32||2
|-
|1992–93||8||0||?||?||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||8||0
|-
|
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:* * * *...
||rowspan="6"|PAOK||rowspan="6"|Alpha Ethniki|||20||2||1||0||colspan="2"|-||0||0||21||2
|-
|
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:* * * *...
||30||0||5||1||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||35||1
|-
|
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:* * * *...
||31||4||4||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||35||4
|-
|
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:* * * *...
||27||0||7||1||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||34||1
|-
|
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:* * * *...
||32||2||3||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||35||2
|-
|
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 :* * * *...
||15||2||2||0||colspan="2"|-||6||3||23||5
|-
|
1997–98The FA Premier League 1997-98 season saw Arsenal lift their first league title since 1991, and also become only the second team to win the 'double' of the FA Cup and league title twice...
||rowspan="3"|
Leicester CityLeicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
||rowspan="3"|Premier League||14||1||0||0||0||0||0||0||14||1
|-
|
1998–99The 1998–99 FA Premier League season was the seventh season of the Premier League, the top division of English football, since its establishment in 1992. The season will always be remembered as the one in which Manchester United won a unique treble of the league title, the FA Cup and the European Cup...
||19||1||2||0||5||0||0||0||26||1
|-
|
1999–00The FA Premier League 1999–2000 season was the eighth season of the FA Premier League, and Manchester United secured their sixth Premiership title. Like the previous season, they lost only three league games all season...
||17||1||4||0||7||0||0||0||28||1
|-
|
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:* * * *...
||rowspan="4"|AEK||rowspan="4"|Alpha Ethniki||23||1||5||0||colspan="2"|-||7||0||35||1
|-
|
2001–02-League Standings:Champions: Olympiacos Piraeus. Cup Winners: AEK Athens FC.- References :* * * *...
||26||3||9||1||colspan="2"|-||10||4||52||9
|-
|
2002–03The 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...
||25||0||7||1||colspan="2"|-||11||1||43||2
|-
|
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...
||27||0||5||0||colspan="2"|-||8||0||40||0
|-
|
2004–05In the 2004–05 season, the Serie A, the highest professional football league in Italy, was composed of 20 teams for the first time in several years....
||
BolognaBologna Football Club 1909, known simply as Bologna, is an Italian Football League club based in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, formed in 1993. The club are nicknamed the rossoblù because of the red and blue striped shirts they wear. Red and Blue are the official colours of the town.During its history...
||
Serie ASerie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
||32||0||?||?||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||32||0
|-
|2005–06||rowspan="2"|PAOK||Alpha Ethniki||22||0||0||0||colspan="2"|-||5||0||27||0
|-
|2006–07||Superleague||23||0||4||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||27||0
415||20||52||4||colspan="2"|-||47||8||514||32
50||3||6||0||13||0||0||0||69||3
32||0||?||?||colspan="2"|-||0||0||32||0
497||23||58||4||13||0||47||8||615||35
International
|-
|1994||4||0
|-
|1995||11||0
|-
|1996||9||0
|-
|1997||9||0
|-
|1998||4||0
|-
|1999||13||0
|-
|2000||5||0
|-
|2001||9||0
|-
|2002||10||0
|-
|2003||10||0
|-
|2004||16||0
|-
|2005||11||1
|-
|2006||8||2
|-
|2007||1||0
|-
!Total||120||3
|}
Club
Leicester CityLeicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
Winner
- League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
: 2000The 2000 Worthington Cup Final was played between Leicester City, in their third final appearance in four years, and First Division side Tranmere Rovers at Wembley on 27 February 2000...
Runner-up
- League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
: 1999The 1999 Worthington Cup Final was played between Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City, at Wembley on Sunday 21 March 1999. Tottenham won the game, and their third League Cup, with an injury-time diving header from Allan Nielsen...
AEK Athens
Winner
- Greek 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....
: 2002The Greek Cup 2001-2002 was the 60th edition of The Greek Football Cup, or Greek Cup for short.-Group 1:-Group 2:-Group 3:-Group 4:-Group 5:-Group 6:-Group 7:-Group 8:-Group 9:-Group 10:-Group 11:-Second round:...
Runner-up
International
- European 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
Individual
- Euro 2004: Team of the Tournament
- Euro 2004: Player of the tournament
External links