19 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Ilioupoli lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 78 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Ilioupoli and Atromitos have settled on $95.0K. The rest belongs to the player and his agent, and a supporter who has watched one of these before knows not to buy the shirt yet.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ilioupoli can pretend not to have heard.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Ilioupoli have done the hard part with Atromitos, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Olympiacos keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Ilioupoli know it.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Levadiakos have kept their man, and Ilioupoli go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
26 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Ilioupoli lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Ilioupoli will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Ilioupoli people have started saying his name in the past tense.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Ilioupoli, and it is not being withdrawn.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Panetolikos is saying, and nobody at Ilioupoli is enjoying the guessing.
Michalis Kouiroukidis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad26 Jul 2027
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jorge Juliá is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
34 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Ilioupoli lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 92 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ilioupoli can pretend not to have heard.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Atromitos keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ilioupoli they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ousmane Sountoura was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 99 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Judah Garcia will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ilioupoli the goodbyes have quietly begun.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
25 points from position 5. The title is somebody else’s business and the drop is somebody else’s problem; what is left is the argument about passports.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 106 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Michalis Kouiroukidis and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad5 Jul 2027
Jorge Juliá falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Ilioupoli asked and AEL Larisa said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Ilioupoli have made the call to Atromitos. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
5 arrivals, an average age nobody would call a squad, and a set of parents being shown around a building their sons will spend more time in than at home. The scouting has already happened; today is only the paperwork.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Ilioupoli will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Ilioupoli have lost him in all but the paperwork.
The deal with Kifisia is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Squad28 Jun 2027
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ousmane Sountoura is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. AEL Larisa have kept their man, and Ilioupoli go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Panserraikos paid $20.0K and Ilioupoli took it, which is the whole story in one sentence. The longer version involves a wage budget and will be told all season.
Ilioupoli have made the call to Kampaniakos. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Ilioupoli people have started saying his name in the past tense.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Atromitos keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ilioupoli is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Everything agreed with Panetolikos, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ilioupoli they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Ilioupoli and Atromitos have settled on $95.0K. The rest belongs to the player and his agent, and a supporter who has watched one of these before knows not to buy the shirt yet.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Ilioupoli have done the hard part with Panserraikos, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Michalis Kouiroukidis and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad14 Jun 2027
A muscle injury sidelines Sergio Chica for 14 days
Nobody makes a documentary about a hamstring and everybody in the game fears one. Ilioupoli will be careful with the return date, because the second one is always worse than the first.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ousmane Sountoura was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Ilioupoli asked and Makedonikos said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Ilioupoli had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at Olympiacos, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
Michalis Kouiroukidis and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. All Boys have kept their man, and Ilioupoli go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Not a new contract, not a new number: a new place in the manager’s thinking, which is the only promotion in football that actually matters. Judah Garcia has moved up it.
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Ilioupoli has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
The registration window is open and the phone has started. Between now and the deadline this club will be linked with forty players and sign three, which is the usual ratio.
Footballers are asked about their boyhood club so often that nobody listens to the answer. Kelwin has just signed for Ilioupoli, and for once the answer mattered.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ousmane Sountoura was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Iván Ortigoza and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
There are footballers who have a good season and footballers a season is remembered for, and the second kind get their names read out in a hall in the summer. Ilioupoli will be quietly delighted and privately nervous.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ilioupoli they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ilioupoli is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Michalis Kouiroukidis and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad17 May 2027
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ousmane Sountoura is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Ilioupoli has been clear about where Dimitris Thomaidis stands, which is more than many ever get.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Michalis Patiras trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
25 points from position 5. The title is somebody else’s business and the drop is somebody else’s problem; what is left is the argument about passports.
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ousmane Sountoura is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Giorgos Maidanos and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ousmane Sountoura is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ilioupoli they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ilioupoli they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Ilioupoli will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
25 points from position 5. The title is somebody else’s business and the drop is somebody else’s problem; what is left is the argument about passports.
14 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Ilioupoli lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Michalis Kouiroukidis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ousmane Sountoura was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The words a physio says slowly. 23 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Michalis Kouiroukidis and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ousmane Sountoura was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
30 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Ilioupoli lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ilioupoli is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ousmane Sountoura was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
39 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Ilioupoli lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ilioupoli they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ousmane Sountoura is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
In brief
The dugoutThe manager makes an example of Orestis Kreci
Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 22 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ousmane Sountoura was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Giorgos Maidanos and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Michalis Tsoumanis will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ilioupoli the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ousmane Sountoura was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ilioupoli they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad22 Feb 2027
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ousmane Sountoura is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Ilioupoli has been clear about where Marios Kostoulas stands, which is more than many ever get.
Position 5, 25 points, and a run-in that decides whether next season has Thursday nights in it. Nobody is calling it a race yet, which is what people say during one.
“I respect the manager and I am not going to sit here and pretend I am happy.” It is the most common sentence in football and it has never once been the end of a story.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Makedonikos have kept their man, and Ilioupoli go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Iván Ortigoza and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“I respect the manager and I am not going to sit here and pretend I am happy.” It is the most common sentence in football and it has never once been the end of a story.
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Ilioupoli has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at AEK is saying, and nobody at Ilioupoli is enjoying the guessing.
Michalis Kouiroukidis and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad8 Feb 2027
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ousmane Sountoura is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Ilioupoli asked and Kampaniakos said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
A year in and the city has not opened up, the language has not come, and lunch is eaten alone more often than anybody at Ilioupoli would admit. It shows on Saturdays.
That is the business done at Ilioupoli until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Michalis Tsoumanis will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ilioupoli the goodbyes have quietly begun.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Ilioupoli have done the hard part with Atromitos, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Nothing is announced when this happens and everybody knows. He is a bigger part of the plan at Ilioupoli than he was a month ago, and the training ground worked that out before the team sheet said so.
The clubs have shaken hands with AEK; the player has not yet. Personal terms are next, and personal terms are where more deals die than anybody prints.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ilioupoli they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.
25 points from position 5. The title is somebody else’s business and the drop is somebody else’s problem; what is left is the argument about passports.
He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.
The last league game has been played and the table has stopped moving: 25 points. The summer begins on Monday, and so does the argument about what it all meant.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Ilioupoli people have started saying his name in the past tense.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Ilioupoli have done the hard part with OFI, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Olympiacos is saying, and nobody at Ilioupoli is enjoying the guessing.
4 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Ilioupoli can tell you which week it ends in.
Michalis Kouiroukidis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
9 without defeat on their own grass. The pitch has not changed; the crowd has — louder earlier, and quicker to sense when the opposition would rather be somewhere else.
Squad18 Jan 2027
Jorge Juliá falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Ilioupoli have lost him in all but the paperwork.
6 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Every run ends on an afternoon somebody had marked down as routine. This one went 10 matches, which is long enough that a town had stopped counting, and short enough that it will remember exactly who stopped it.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: AEK keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Michalis Kouiroukidis and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Ilioupoli can tell you which week it ends in.
The kind of year that ends with a name being read out in a hall. Ilioupoli had the benefit of it every week and now have the problem of everybody else knowing.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ilioupoli can pretend not to have heard.
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Successful dribbles: 22. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Add another name to the list: Panargiakos have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Judah Garcia. The answer from Ilioupoli has not changed — yet.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Sergio Chica and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
In brief
Player ratingsGiannis Satsias ran the middle of the pitch — 7.00
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jorge Juliá was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.
8 home matches unbeaten. Visiting sides arrive already talking about the atmosphere, which is usually the sign that they have half-lost before kickoff.
Successful dribbles: 18. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
18 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Ilioupoli lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Michalis Kouiroukidis provided it, and the 8.46 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Successful dribbles: 24. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Michalis Kouiroukidis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ousmane Sountoura is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
A player who expected to start watched it instead. The manager will call it a decision for the team; Michalis Patiras will call it something else in private.
“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Michalis Vrousai after the 2‑2 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.
27 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Ilioupoli lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Successful dribbles: 20. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Michalis Kouiroukidis was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Giorgos Maidanos and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 0‑0, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.
The words a physio says slowly. 35 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jorge Juliá was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Alfredo Blancq-Cazaux has come out of that comparison in the side, and Ilioupoli have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 0‑0, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.
Somebody watched every match in the division at the weekend and decided he was the best thing in any of them. A small honour, and most careers end without one.
Position 2, 19 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Alfredo Blancq-Cazaux provided it, and the 8.06 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Successful dribbles: 23. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ousmane Sountoura was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.
Diallo Sanoussi, 20, plays like he has been here for years — 8.38
A mark of 8.38 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 20-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.
Michalis Kouiroukidis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
A midfielder is measured on whether the team functions when he is on the pitch, which is nearly impossible to see and completely obvious in retrospect. 14 actions, 7.35, and a manager who will not be substituting him again in a hurry.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Jorge Juliá falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Giannis Satsias has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Successful dribbles: 13. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Iván Ortigoza was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Egaleo in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Ilioupoli. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
A point taken on 97 minutes is worth exactly one point and considerably more than that to a dressing room. This side does not stop, which is a reputation worth more than the result.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It finished 2‑2, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Michalis Vrousai chose the glass-half-full version of 2‑2; the supporters left with the other one.
Every signing waits for it and every press conference asks about it until it comes. It has come, Ilioupoli have their man off the mark, and the second one is always easier.
Position 4, 13 points, and a run-in that decides whether next season has Thursday nights in it. Nobody is calling it a race yet, which is what people say during one.
Everything agreed with another club, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jorge Juliá was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Diallo Sanoussi has come out of that comparison in the side, and Ilioupoli have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
“The players deserve the credit. My job was easy today.” It was not, and everybody in the room knew it; after 1‑0, Michalis Vrousai could afford to be generous.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Michalis Kouiroukidis was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Roger Tamba. 2‑1 against Chania, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
He is 23 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
10 combined actions and 7.27. The job he did is the one that shows up as other people looking good, and the only reliable way to notice it is to watch what happens on the afternoons he is missing.
15 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
The manager’s verdict
“I am not going to get carried away and I will not let them either. It was a good day. There will be harder ones.” Michalis Vrousai kept it short after the 2‑1 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.
In brief
Looking aheadA test against the best for Ilioupoli
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 4 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Squad19 Oct 2026
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Michalis Kouiroukidis is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Giorgos Maidanos and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Michalis Vrousai after 0‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Chania in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jorge Juliá was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
At 20 he is being measured against the rest of the division's kids and coming out in front. The senior version of this award is where the club would like this to lead.
Panionios next, and one man in the Ilioupoli dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Ilioupoli. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Ilioupoli, and both men came out saying it was fine.
4 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Michalis Kouiroukidis was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 20-year-old it feels ownership of. Diallo Sanoussi has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ilioupoli are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
The award is a small thing with a heavy meaning: for four weeks nobody in this division did his job better. Ilioupoli have the trophy on a shelf and the player in the side.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
It finished 0-3. A cup exit is a disappointment; this was a public dismantling, and the difference between the two is the number of people who will still be talking about it in August.
Michalis Kouiroukidis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
15 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Michalis Kouiroukidis and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jorge Juliá was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings21 Sep 2026
Iván Ortigoza was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.18. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
A 2‑2 draw with Olympiacos B leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Michalis Vrousai was not hiding it after 2‑2, and nobody in the Ilioupoli dressing room was either.
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Ilioupoli have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Panargiakos in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
The board had gone up, the arguing had started, and then the ball was in the net in the 95th minute. Hellas Syros will replay every second of the added time for a week.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Ilioupoli, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad14 Sep 2026
Words at Ilioupoli training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Michalis Kouiroukidis is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Ilioupoli asked and Olympiacos said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Michalis Kouiroukidis. 2‑1 against Hellas Syros, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 19 arrived, 0 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Michalis Kouiroukidis was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Iván Ortigoza is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
The deal with Atromitos is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Successful dribbles: 22. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad31 Aug 2026
Jorge Juliá falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Giorgos Maidanos was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
15 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑1, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
In brief
BoardroomIlioupoli say no to the training-ground money
Everything agreed with PAS Giannina, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Michalis Kouiroukidis was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every shape has positions in it and this one does not have his. Ilioupoli will either change the shape, change his job, or change his club, and he is waiting to hear which.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ilioupoli this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Fotios Papanikolaou and Ilioupoli agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Ilioupoli has been clear about where Marios Kostoulas stands, which is more than many ever get.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Egaleo in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
Ilioupoli had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at PAS Giannina, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Miltos Innos was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at Ilioupoli would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.
He is doing things every Saturday that nobody around him can answer. It is flattering for a season and a problem after that, and Ilioupoli know which stage they are at.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Olympiacos keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Michalis Kouiroukidis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad10 Aug 2026
Jorge Juliá falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Panagiotis Tsimikas has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Andreas Limnios is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Eleftherios Androutsos has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Michalis Kouiroukidis and Ilioupoli agree another 3 years.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Michalis Kouiroukidis was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
Squad3 Aug 2026
9 new faces, and Ilioupoli are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
Ilioupoli have made the call to Panetolikos. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.