Michalis Kritikopoulos – Linked With the Team Forever

100 YEARS OLYMPIACOS

A prolific Olympiacos scorer, helium took his past enactment wearing the red-and-white jersey

The sanction of Michalis Kritikopoulos is inextricably linked with Olympiacos, not lone due to the fact that arsenic a subordinate helium contributed a large woody to the Piraeus team, but besides due to the fact that helium took his past enactment connected the playing field, wearing the Reds’ jersey.

Kritikopoulos wore the Olympiacos uniform for 7 years and his show successful the red-and-white stripe was indicative of his potential. He was a prodigious scorer and though helium wasn’t the bulkiest striker, his specialty was scoring with headers. No wonder everyone said helium could enactment the shot successful the nett in… a thousand ways and particularly with his head.

The years were hard and together with his brothers and sisters Kritikopoulos entered the workforce arsenic a young teen. His archetypal occupation was arsenic a plumber, but his emotion for shot ever led him backmost to the tract successful the afternoons.

An orphan astatine young age

Michalis Kritikopoulos was calved connected January 3, 1946, and mislaid his begetter astatine an aboriginal age, when helium was lone 11 years old. The years were hard and together with his brothers and sisters helium entered the workforce arsenic a young teen. His archetypal occupation was arsenic a plumber, but his emotion for shot ever led him backmost to the tract successful the afternoons. Michalis had a imagination of becoming a footballer and helium achieved it, going connected to person an astonishing career.

A opening from Kaisariani

From an aboriginal property his emotion for shot was evident arsenic “all roads led” to the pitch. In 1962 helium played for the eastbound Athens nine of Kaisariani and what helium did connected tract resulted successful his archetypal transfer to a larger club. Things had taken their people and Michalis would σύντομα statesman to slowly marque past arsenic 1 of the astir skilled scorers successful an epoch earlier Greek shot professional. The president of Panegialios, Asterios Belas, heard astir the youngster from Kaisariani and decided to bring him to his team. Michalis went to small metropolis of Egio (Aigio), west of Athens connected the bluish seashore of the Peloponnese, where helium played for two years and then transferred to Ethnikos, which was an adjacent bigger nine located successful the larboard metropolis of Piraeus, Olympiacos’ location arsenic well. Everyone spoke highly of Kritikopoulos and his scoring ability, something that was confirmed some during his tenure astatine Ethnikos and, of course, astatine Olympiacos.

A grounds transfer

Olympiacos purchased Kritikopoulos from Ethnikos successful 1973, with then president Nikos Goulandris paying a grounds magnitude astatine the time. It was a transfer that shook Greek football, with Olympiacos adding a striker who would greatly assistance the team. The Reds paid 9 cardinal drachmas to Ethnikos to get the then 27-year-old Kritikopoulos and the wealth paid off.

Michalis recorded awesome appearances with Olympiacos, helium was loved by the fans and became portion of a legendary team that went down successful Olympiacos’ legendary history.

A title lucifer successful Volos

Kritikopoulos made his debut with Olympiacos successful Volos, where helium scored a extremity successful his debut quality with the Reds. As past would person it, Michalis played for the past clip successful an Olympiacos jersey again successful the metropolis of Volos. To beryllium precise, helium played successful a tie-breaker lucifer to determine the title successful 1980 (the 1979-80 season) against Aris Thessaloniki. Olympiacos defeated Aris 2-0 and won the title, with Kritikopoulos bidding farewell to Olympiacos arsenic a champion. After his legendary vocation with Olympiacos, Kritikopoulos played for Apollon Athens for 1 year and then hung up his cleats.

A keen scorer

Kritikopoulos was a charismatic scorer, and peculiarly “deadly” successful the aerial with his heading ability. During his agelong vocation helium scored 176 goals, a show that is awesome and ranks him among the top scorers of Greek football. He scored 84 goals with Olympiacos, 79 with Ethnikos and 9 with Panegialios. He besides scored 4 times while playing for Apollon, successful the last play of his career.

He won three championships and two Cups with Olympiacos and was peculiarly loved by the Reds’ fans.

His past game

What has everlastingly sealed the enslaved betwixt the Club and Kritikopoulos was his past game, playing connected a team of Olympiacos old-timers against a akin team connected the land of Andros, connected July 20, 2002. He took his past enactment connected the tract wearing the Legend’s jersey. The crippled was scheduled connected the juncture of the inauguration of the Ioannis Goulandris stadium connected the island, and the Olympiacos veterans faced section Olympiacos Andros successful a friendly.

Kritikopoulos fell connected the delivery astir the 25th infinitesimal and contempt the champion efforts of archetypal responders helium took his past enactment connected the field, suffering a monolithic bosom onslaught and passing distant prematurely astatine the property of 56.

The municipal stadium of Kaisariani present bears the sanction “Michalis Kritikopoulos”, arsenic the eastbound Athens municipality wanted to grant the representation of the top shot subordinate that the territory ever produced by giving the sanction of the legendary Olympiacos subordinate to the venue. On their part, the Reds’ fans person fond memories of Kritikopoulos, recognizing the player’s immense publication to their team.