 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Vasilios Hatzipanagis | ||
| Date of birth | (1954-10-26)26 October 1954 (age 71) | ||
| Place of birth | Tashkent, Uzbek SSR, Soviet Union | ||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Position(s) | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1972–1975 | Pakhtakor Tashkent | 96 | (22) |
| 1975–1990 | Iraklis | 281 | (61) |
| 1980 | →Toronto Panhellenic (loan) | ||
| Total | 377 | (83) | |
| International career | |||
| 1974–1975 | Soviet Union U19 | ||
| 1975 | Soviet Union Olympic | 4 | (1) |
| 1976 | Greece U21 | 4 | (0) |
| 1976–1999 | Greece | 2 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Vasilis Hatzipanagis (Greek:Βασίλης Χατζηπαναγής,Greek pronunciation:[vaˈsilisxad͡zipanaˈʝis], born 26 October 1954) is aGreek former professionalfootballer. He played as amidfielder forIraklis in theAlpha Ethniki andPakhtakor Tashkent in theSoviet Supreme League. He also played forGreece and theSoviet Union side.
Hatzipanagis is widely acclaimed among Greek and international football aficionados as one of the preeminent Greek footballers of all time.[1] Despite his talent, his career was marred by contractual controversies.[2] Numerous sources have bestowed upon him the epithet of "The GreekMaradona."[3]
Hatzipanagis was born in 1954 inTashkent, the capital city of theUzbek Soviet Socialist Republic, toGreek political refugees. His father was Greek-Cypriot fromMakrasyka,[4]and his mother was fromConstantinople.[5] He was scouted byPakhtakor Tashkent. They wanted to invest in this raw, yet refined player, but the law was strict: he had to apply for Soviet citizenship to be eligible for the Soviet top flight. Hatzipanagis made his professional debut at the age of 17. During his time there, he made ninety-six appearances and scored twenty-two goals, and gained promotion from theSoviet First League to theSoviet Supreme League in 1972.
With theReign of the Colonels finally over the year before,[6] Hatzipanagis signed for theThessaloniki's clubIraklis, and such was his reputation that he filled the stadium for his first match in December 1975. The Iraklis fans would be one of the reasons this exceptional talent never joined another team, the other being his contract with Iraklis was heavily favoured towards the club, making it almost impossible for him to leave despite his desire to test himself in a better league. Despite interest fromLazio,Arsenal,Porto andStuttgart, the club's board feared the consequences of selling the crowd favourite, and Hatzipanagis stayed at Iraklis until 1990. His farewell appearance for the club came in aUEFA Cup first round match againstValencia on 19 September, in a 0–0 draw.[7] In the second leg on 3 October, the team lost 2–0 at theMestalla Stadium, with Hatzipanagis an unused substitute.[8]
In the summer of 1980, he played abroad in theNational Soccer League on loan with Toronto Panhellenic.[9] He won the league play-offs with the club.[10]
He was called up to theSoviet Union under-19 squad. He was promoted to the senior squad and represented theSoviet Union Olympic team in the1976 qualifying tournament.[11] His debut was made in a 3–0 home win againstYugoslavia. He even managed to score his team's last goal in his debut.[11] Hatzipanagis featured in three more matches (two matches againstIceland and one againstNorway).[11] However, despite being told by national coachKonstantin Beskov that his ability was "way above Greece's level", he turned his back on the Soviet league – where as a left-sided attacker he was considered second only to the greatOleg Blokhin – to move to the land of his fathers.
Another highlight for Hatzipanagis was his first appearance forGreece, in a friendly match againstPoland atLeoforos Alexandras Stadium in May 1976. The crowd ofAthens were bewitched by his skills, that seemed to do whatever he wanted with the ball at his feet. Afterward, Hatzipanagis was notified that he was ineligible for international duty, having played for the USSR. His second appearance with the national team came many years after his retirement on 14 December 1999, when he played for 20 minutes in the friendly match againstGhana. In this match he was honored by theHellenic Football Federation for his overall contribution to Greek football.
As an attacking midfielder with Iraklis, he packed in the crowds atThessaloniki'sKaftanzoglio Stadium, where his performances earned him the moniker of "the footballingNureyev". However, the reason he gave for his fancy footwork was simple enough. "When I see defenders in front of me, I want to dribble around every one of them," he once said.
Further recognition did come on 22 June 1984, when he was invited to join a World XI featuring other legends such asFranz Beckenbauer,Mario Kempes,Kevin Keegan,Dominique Rocheteau,Peter Shilton,Jean-Marie Pfaff,Hugo Sanchez,Ruud Krol,Felix Magath and his countrymanThomas Mavros for a match againstNew York Cosmos inNew Jersey.
In November 2003, to celebrate UEFA's 50th anniversary, he was selected as Greece'sGolden Player of the past 50 years by the Hellenic Football Federation.[12] Aged 50, Hatzipanagis said: "It is very touching to see that you are not forgotten, that your contribution is appreciated even after so many years." He added: "I regret not having been able to wear the Greek national jersey more than once. And I regret not having made a career abroad. I would have liked to play in a better league, to have enjoyed football at that level. If I could turn back the clock, I would do some things differently."
| Club | League | Cup | Europe | Balkans Cup | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |
| Pakhtakor Tashkent | Soviet First League | 96 | 22 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 105 | 24 |
| Iraklis | Alpha Ethniki | 281 | 61 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 285 | 62 | ||
| Career total | 377 | 83 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 390 | 86 | |
Last updated: 2025-06-20
Source:Vasilis Hatzipanagis at National-Football-Teams.com
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soviet Union U19 | 1975 | 4 | 1 |
| Total | 4 | 1 | |
| Greece U21 | 1976 | 4 | 0 |
| Total | 4 | 0 | |
| Greece | 1976 | 1 | 0 |
| 1999 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 2 | 0 | |
| Career total | 10 | 1 | |
Pakhtakor Tashkent
Iraklis
Toronto Panhellenic
Individual
