2024-05-14 08:29:49
The winning of the UEFA Youth League Cup, i.e. the U19 Champions League, by Olympiacos, who beat Milan in the final with a score of 3-0, brings to the surface again the issue of the utilization of talents in Greece, as well as the potential of the teams of the Super League there are more foreign footballers.
Many times this issue also occupied the people of Ioannina, with many questions, such as why talented footballers from the Epirus region do not play in PAS and why from time to time the children who became professionals from the youth teams did not get the corresponding opportunities to establish themselves in the professional world club; It is a topic that raises a lot of discussion. First of all, if the children are properly evaluated to participate in the Youth teams, that is, if they choose the most capable and with the greatest talent. The fact that most of them were lost along the way as soon as they left PAS directly raises the issue of improper selection of children, leaving out other children with greater talent. Secondly, if the children who will become professionals are correctly and meritoriously evaluated from the rosters of the youth teams, thirdly, if the coaches give them the opportunities to show their talent.
In the last 25 years, the players who came out of the infrastructure of PAS and had an important career are Giorgos Dasios, Alexis Michael, Giourkas Seitaridis, Michalis Bolos, Nikos Spyropoulos, Marios Economou, Yannis Tatsis, Xenophon Gittas, Haris Charisis, Christos Bourbos. Many other footballers who either came out of the bowels of the team or were transferred from amateur teams in the region, were lost along the way with careers in smaller categories and without a significant presence in PAS. It cannot be that all these footballers did not have the appropriate qualifications to play for the local team. The team didn’t work properly either, not giving due importance to the football players of the region. And also, for a number of years PAS has not had a network of scouts to monitor amateur football in order to better identify the talents that exist.
The amateur football of Ioannina and Epirus in general is a large reservoir where PAS with the right people can find children who with the right training can give their best in the professional team, much more than other transfers of dubious value that are made from time to time. The people who did not support the boys from Ioannina, thinking that the transfers of players from other teams or from abroad would make the local team stronger, also have a share of responsibility. And the distinction we make between local and foreign footballers is strictly based on football criteria, without any other extension. The footballers from Ioannina have an additional motivation to give something more to the team, as they have loved PAS since they were little, compared to other professional footballers who come by transfer from other teams and do not have the same emotional bond. Also, by cultivating the nursery and paving the way for talented players from the region, PAS saves money from transfers and expectations and financial benefits from sales to bigger teams. Something that the late Giorgos Christovasilis achieved with Mavropanos, Harisis, Oikonomou, but without giving much importance to the amateurs of Epirus and the infrastructure. It is true that PAE wanted to sell players but never spent money on infrastructure and scouting. He did the absolutely necessary, just enough to operate the departments and to get a license. And if there weren’t some honorable people in the youth groups and loyal soldiers there would be a huge problem. The Youth teams from 2013 onwards began to be under the responsibility of PAE, while before they were in the structures of Amateur PAS.
THE TALENTS FROM THE CONTINENT
Let’s go back 20 years to see the talented players promoted from the Youth teams and the journey they took. In the 2003-04 season, with the huge financial problems that PAE had, Giorgos Kakkavos, Vassilis Triandos, Giorgos Khiras were promoted to the professional team, who helped in those difficult years but did not have the same continuity in PAS. The following season, Kostas Manzios turned professional without getting any playing time. In the 2005-06 season, Kostas Kaznaferis from Anagennisi Artas, Diamantis, Tassiulas from Doxa Kranoulas and Xenofontas Manzios from Thyella Katsika wore the shirt of PAS. In the local team, only Kaznaferis made several appearances for 3 years, who then played in Aris, Iraklis and other teams. In the two years 2006-08, Giannis Daskalos, Panagiotis Lolas became professionals and Giorgos Lappas was transferred from Ethnikos Filippiadas. Both did not establish themselves in the team.
From 2008 onwards, the era of the late Giorgos Christovasilis began and in the first years, Euripides Iakos, Haris Tsanis, Kostas Pappas, Yiannis Ioannou, Giorgos Kolios signed professional contracts from the Youth teams. Except for Yakos who competed successfully for some years in PAS with a continuous career in professional football, the rest of the players did not even get the opportunities to test their worth in official matches. Leaving “Ajax” they did not go anywhere higher. Some have gone on from hobbies to local amateur groups. Iakos is competing in Kozani today.
Subsequently, in the five-year period 2012-17, Marios Oikonomou, Haris Charisis, Yiannis Nakos, Nikolaos Koliofoukas, Apostolos Bakolas, Alexandros Masouras joined the professional team from infrastructure. Apart from Harisis who was transferred to PAOK and Marios Oikonomos who was transferred to Cagliari in 2013, no one else became a starter in PAS. Nakos, Bakolas continued in regional groups. Koliofoukas is currently in the Gentelo 4th National Team of Germany with intermediate passes from Kilkisiako, National Piraeus, AO Corfu, Doxa Drama, Thesprotos. Masouras plays for Diagoras Rhodes, after having also passed through AE Karaiskakis Artas, Chania, Apollon Paralimniou Cyprus, Renaissance Karditsa. Harisis continues in Sivaspor of Turkey, while apart from PAOK, he played for Sid Truiden, Kortnik of Belgium and Atromito Peristeri. Marios Oikonomou is in Panaitolikos, while he played in Cagliari, Bologna, Spal, Bari, AEK, Copenhagen.
STAVROS PELIOS STAND OUT
Several young guys were promoted to the first team from the infrastructure in the five-year period 2017-22, such as Stavros Pelios, Angelos Liassos, Giorgos Gogos, Alexandros Lolis, Kostas Papadopoulos, Giorgos Papaioannou, Pavlos Grosdanis, Leonid Mina, Iason Kyrkos, Yiannis Rizos. The sales of players that preceded it had sweetened the late Giorgos Christovasilis who tried to pass the philosophy of young players with the ultimate goal of profit, i.e. selling them to bigger teams. And he didn’t put the corresponding money into infrastructure, but he had a better supervision. Pelios moved to AEK last summer as his contract expired. Liassos has been in the team for several years with an offer, without being able to reach top levels that would bring transfer proposals. So is Alexandros Lolis who is now on loan at Juhtas and will return at the end of the current season. However, Liassos and Lolis got opportunities, but sometimes they were wronged by being sidelined to play transfer players. Of the rest, Papaioannou went to Renaissance Arta and is now at Agrotiko Kastritsa, Gogos to Thesprotos and then to Kyrenia Cyprus, Papadopoulos to Panachaiki and now to Aeto Rio Achaia, Rizos was released in the summer and went to Tilykratis, Grosdanis continues his career at Eordaikos Ptolemaidas. Kyrkos and Mina remain in PAS.
Finally, in the two years 2022-24, Nikos Lolis, Angelos Tsiris and Dimitris Naoumis became professionals from the youth teams, without being given opportunities. Naoumis remains in PAS with good prospects, Nikos Lolis was transferred to Olympiakos B’ and was with the youth team in the long European campaign without having time to play, Tsiris is on loan to Youchta and will return as soon as the games are over.
The conclusion that comes from the above report is that in the last 20 years, more than 30 football players from the youth teams became professionals and few of them took a starting position. And also most of those who left PAS did not go somewhere higher. Therefore, either there is no proper evaluation of the players from the infrastructure departments to the professional team so that the best rise to the top, in which case competent children have been wronged, or the PAE coaches do not pay attention to them as they should and opportunities are lost. However, the fact that most children from Ioannina when they leave PAS usually go to small groups is a matter for discussion as to whether the infrastructure mechanism is working properly and what improvements should be made. And because with the relegation to the second national team, there will have to be some rearrangements and a change in the way of thinking of many, the issue of infrastructure and the utilization of children from Epirus should have immediate priority.