Giorgos Donis

Donis started his senior career with PAS Giannina in 1990, and after one successful year he moved to Panathinaikos. The supporters of the team named him the Train for his remarkable acceleration. On 5 June 1996, after helping the Greek club reach the UEFA Champions League semi-finals against Ajax, Donis moved to Blackburn Rovers on a free transfer, making use of the then recent Bosman ruling signing for 1.1 billion drachmas, a record amount for Greek players at the time. He had an erratic season with Blackburn, scoring against Everton and Coventry City. On 12 December 1997 Donis returned to Greece and signed for AEK Athens. During his spell at the club, he did not manage to achieve his past performances. Furthermore, he came in collision with both managers, Dumitru Dumitriu and Dragoslav Stepanović. On 23 March 1999 following his release from AEK, he returned to England, and signed for Sheffield United until the end of the season. Afterwards, he played for Huddersfield Town, where he ended his career in 2000.

Donis made his debut for Greece on 22 December 1991, in a 1–1 draw against Malta for the UEFA Euro 1992 qualifying round. He appeared in 24 matches and scored five goals during his international career with Greece.

AEL

After the end of his playing career, he turned to coaching. Starting in 2002, he led Zografou-based Ilisiakos in two consecutive promotions from the fourth to the second Greek football level. He then made the move to AEL where, after one season, he managed to bring the team to the Greek Super League from the second division, and reached eighth place the following year. In 2007, Larissa finished only tenth in the league, but he managed to win the Greek Cup after defeating Panathinaikos 2–1 in the final. In his first taste of European football management, his team AEL defeated his former team Blackburn Rovers to reach the 2007–08 UEFA Cup group stages. He finished a great year in sixth place in the league, missing out on the season play-offs on goal difference.

AEK Athens

On 25 April 2008, Donis stepped down as manager of AEL and on 14 May he was appointed as head coach of AEK Athens. On 17 November 2008, due to a string of poor performances and early knock out from the UEFA Cup, AEK parted company with him just six months after his appointment.

Atromitos

In 2009, Donis was appointed by Atromitos and in the 2010–11 season he again reached the Greek Cup Final only to lose 0–3 to his former team AEK Athens. In the next year, Atromitos enjoyed another successful spell under his guidance, reaching the Greek Cup Final for a second consecutive time (losing 1–2 to Olympiacos at extra time), as well as participating at the Greek Super League…

Player

Panathinaikos

Alpha Ethniki: 1994–95, 1995–96 Greek Cup: 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95 Greek Super Cup: 1993, 1994

Manager

Ilisiakos

Gamma Ethniki: 2003–04 Delta Ethniki: 2002–03 AEL

Greek Cup: 2006–07 Beta Ethniki: 2004–05 APOEL

Cypriot League: 2013–14 Cypriot Cup: 2013–14 Al-Hilal

King Cup of Champions: 2015 Saudi Super Cup: 2015 Saudi Crown Prince Cup: 2015–16 Maccabi Tel Aviv

Toto Cup Al: 2020–21

Individual

Top Scorer of Greek Cup: 1994–95 (11 goals) Best Manager in Greece: 2011–12 (shared)