Dimitris Salpingidis
Dimitrios Salpingidis (Greek Δημήτριος Σαλπιγγίδης; born August 18, 1981 in Thessaloniki, Greece) is a Greek football player.
Career
Dimitrios Salpingidis, playing on the position of the striker at a height of 1.72 m, started his professional career in 1999 at the resident in his home town club PAOK Thessaloniki. Since Salpingidis was not used until the winter break, he was loaned out in January 2000 for half a year at the, second-rate at that time, club AE Larisa, where he came on seven missions by the summer. After half a year at PAOK, in which the player was only two duty stakes in the cup, Salpingidis was again loaned out. From January 2001 until the summer of 2002 he played at the northern Greek club AO Kavala.
In Kavala Salpingidis be played from the outset in the starting eleven and scored 25 goals in 43 official matches. After this breakthrough in his career, he returned back to 2002 PAOK and played henceforth also here an important role. He was even captain of the team. Height of his engagements with PAOK was the 2002-2003 season, as Salpingidis won the Greek Cup with his team.
In the summer of 2006 Salpingidis finally moved to Panathinaikos Athens and caused quite a stir in Greece. This was due mainly to the fact that strove to fulfill its commitments with Panathinaikos, AEK and Olympiakos the "Big Three" of Greek football. The release of a total of about five million euros was the highest amount paid for a Greek player, who moved within the league. With Panathinaikos Salpingidis was a four-year contract, first played in the UEFA Champions League in 2010 and was next to the trophy winning the Greek championship.
2010 moved back to Salpingidis PAOK Thessaloniki.
National
Salpingidis belongs to the young generation of players who were appointed after winning Euro 2004 by Otto Rehhagel in the squad of the Greek national football team. In 2004 Salpingidis part in the Olympic Games in Athens.
In 2010 he took part in the World Cup. It was the second part of the Greek national team at a World Cup finals. Salpingidis shot here in the second group match against Nigeria the gateway to 1:1. This was the first goal of a Greek national football team at the finals of a World Cup. In the opening match of the European Football Championship Salpingidis shot in the first round 1-1 draw with co-hosts Poland compensation for the Greek team.
Achievements
- Greek champions: 2010
- Greek Cup winner: 2003, 2010
Awards
- Scorer in the Greek League: 2006
- Footballer of the Year in Greece: 2008, 2009