Giorgos Lavaridis

Giorgos Lavaridis
Personal information
Full name Georgios Lavaridis
Date of birth (1947-10-15) 15 October 1947
Place of birth Istanbul, Tyrkey
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s)
Youth career
1961–1964 Galatasaray
1964–1968 AEK Athens
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1968–1976 AEK Athens 133 (6)
1976–1977 Panserraikos 18 (0)
Total 151 (6)
International career
1971 Greece U21
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Giorgos Lavaridis (Greek: Γιώργος Λαβαρίδης; born 15 October 1947) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.[1]

Club career

Lavaridis started playing football in 1961 at Galatasaray, pushed by his father, "Giakis", at the age 14. He was given the nickname "Baby" (Greek: "Μπέμπης") by the local Greeks who watched him play in Istanbul, due to his young age.[2]

In 1964, Lavaridis moved to Greece and joined the academies of AEK Athens.[3] He was promoted to the men's team in 1968 under Branko Stanković. In his first season at the club, he reached the quarter-finals of the European Cup.[4] In 1971 he was one of the key players in winning the championship.[5] In the summer of 1976 the president of the club, Loukas Barlos decided to proceed with a renewal in the roster resulting in the departure of Lavaridis.[6] On 7 August 1976 he signed for Panserraikos,[7] where he played for a season before retiring as a footballer.[8]

International career

Lavaridis was a member of Greece U21, where in 1971 they won the Balkan Youth Championship,[9]

Personal life

Lavaridis is married with two children. He was rumored to be ordained a Greek Orthodox priest,[10] but this was disputed.

On 19 July 2022 he visited the offices of AEK Athens accompanied by his wife and daughter and donated to their new museum his jersey from the early 70's and a photo frame with a photo of him in action from the friendly match against Nacional on 22 August 1973.[11] On 9 June 2024 he visited Agia Sophia Stadium[12] and the museum of AEK Athens and was photographed at the "plaque" dedicated to him outside the stadium.[13]

Honours

AEK Athens

Greece U21

References

  1. ^ "Γιώργος Λαβαρίδης". football.aek.com (in Greek).
  2. ^ "Γιώργος Λαβαρίδης". aekpedia.com.
  3. ^ "HISTORY". aekfc.gr.
  4. ^ Καζαντζόγλου, Σταύρος (15 June 2019). "1968/69: Η πρώτη ελληνική ομάδα σε ευρωπαϊκή οκτάδα, η απογοήτευση εντός συνόρων". enwsi.gr.
  5. ^ "96 χρόνια ΑΕΚ!". kingsport.gr (in Greek). 13 April 2024.
  6. ^ Δημήτρης Παλαμίδακης (24 July 1976). "H Α.Ε.Κ. αποδέσμευσε επτά παίκτας". Athletic Echo (in Greek). p. 6.
  7. ^ Αργύρης Βερβελίδης (8 August 1976). "Ο Πανσερραϊκός απέκτησε τον Λαβαρίδη". Athletic Echo (in Greek). pp. 1, 4.
  8. ^ "Greece 1976/77". RSSSF.
  9. ^ "Το Βαλκανικό Κύπελλο του 1971 για τις ελπίδες". 10 July 2015.
  10. ^ "69αρης ο Γιώργος Λαβαρίδης!". aek-live.gr (in Greek). 15 October 2016.
  11. ^ "Ο μυθικός Γιώργος Λαβαρίδης έδωσε ιστορική φανέλα για το μουσείο της ΑΕΚ!" (in Greek). 19 July 2022.
  12. ^ "Επισκέφτηκε την OPAP Arena και το Μουσείο της ΑΕΚ ο Γιώργος Λαβαρίδης". sport-fm.gr (in Greek). 15 June 2024.
  13. ^ "Γιώργος Λαβαρίδης: Επίσκεψη στην OPAP Arena και το Μουσείο της ΑΕΚ" (in Greek). 15 June 2024.
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