Dimitris Salpingidis

PAOK

Born in Zagliveri, Salpingidis started out as a Greco-Roman wrestler before discovering his calling in football. Salpingidis began his football career through the youth ranks of PAOK. Before football Salpingidis was participating in wrestling in which he was very good at, with a dream of competing in the Olympics. He didn't make it as a wrestler but his dream came true as footballer in 2004. On 30 September 1999 he marked his official debut against Lokomotivi Tbilisi with a goal in a 2–0 win. Acknowledging his potential and in order to gain much needed experience, the team soon loaned him for two successive seasons to Kavala where he finished top scorer of the Second Division. His plea for a return to PAOK was granted by his mentor, Angelos Anastasiadis and he became an integral part of the team. On 25 August 2002 he made his league debut for PAOK in a 4–1 win against Panathinaikos. He scored his first league goal in 2–3 away win against OFI. Despite playing out of position as a right midfielder he managed to earn a place in the starting line-up, just a few months after returning from loan. Plagued with financial problems, the next season saw the club experiencing an exodus of its top players such as striker Ioannis Okkas and ex-Newcastle United forward Giorgos Georgiadis, Salpingidis, at the age of 21, then became first-choice striker and captain of the team. The 2003–04 season proved to be the best in many years, as the club finished an unexpected 3rd,…

Salpingidis has made 82 appearances and scored 13 times for the Greece national football team, including the winning goal in the away leg of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification play-offs against Ukraine, which sent Greece through to the final tournament. He made his debut for the national team on 17 August 2005 against Belgium. On 17 June 2010, in a 2010 FIFA World Cup group stage match against Nigeria, he scored Greece's first ever World Cup goal with a shot from outside the area deflected off in Lukman Haruna. On 8 June 2012, Salpingidis came on as a substitute and scored Greece's first goal in the Euro 2012 tournament, in the opening match, a 1–1 draw against Poland, becoming the first ever Greek player who scored in both the FIFA World Cup and the UEFA Euro. Later in the quarterfinals against Germany, he assisted Giorgos Samaras' goal and also scored the last goal with a penalty against Manuel Neuer, a match that ended 4–2, resulting Germany proceeding to the semi-finals. Ahead of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Salpingidis expressed optimism about Greece's prospects in the tournament. He noted that Greece's objective was to advance beyond the group stage after being eliminated in the first round of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, where the team recorded its first World Cup victory. Salpingidis described Group C, which included Colombia, Japan, and Ivory Coast, as competitive and stated that Greece was capable of reaching the round of 16. He also emphasized the team's collective…

Club

International

Scores and results list Greece's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Salpingidis goal.

Club

PAOK

Greek Cup: 2002–03; runner-up: 2013–14 Panathinaikos

Super League Greece: 2009–10 Greek Cup: 2009–10; runner-up: 2006–07

Individual

Gamma Ethniki top scorer: 2001–02 Alpha Ethniki top scorer: 2005–06 Greek Footballer of the year: 2007–08, 2008–09 PAOK MVP of the Season: 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06