INTERVIEW: Panagiotis Papadopoulos: Meet the Greek winger who plays in Ghana Premier League

He was born in Accra to a Greek father and a Ghanaian mother. He plays as a winger in Legon Cities, a Premier division team. Sport24.gr spoke with Panagiotis Papadopoulos and presents his story.

In 1980, Dimitris Papadopoulos traveled to Accra for work. There he met Jane Eminsang. They were going to marry Ganeza and start a family. Three girls and two boys. The youngest of all is Panagiotis. He was born on June 6, 1999. He doesn’t remember many things from his father, though.

He died when Panagiotis was young. He could not learn much about his roots in Greece. He did not learn Greek, he never managed to talk to relatives in our country, nor has he ever thought of it until today.

The 21-year-old is a footballer. He competes in the Ghana Premier League, in Legon Cities. In fact, on January 3, he scored in the home game against Asante Kotoko and became the first player in Ghana to find the net in 2020. His position in the game is extreme, mainly on the right.

“My love for the ball was born because of Cristiano Ronaldo. He is my idol,” admitted Panagiotis Papadopoulos to Sport24.gr, whom his teammates and fans call “Pano”.

One day he dreams of playing for the National Team of Greece. “I don’t have a Greek passport. But I have to take it out. We don’t have a Greek embassy in Ghana. I really want to one day wear the jersey of National Greece,” said the extreme striker of Legon Cities. He even knows the Greek teams, but he has a favorite: “I support Olympiakos. And of his players, the one I like the most is Ahmed Hassan.”

The championship in Ghana has been suspended due to the coronation. “We have 566 cases and eight deaths. There is quarantine in several parts of the country,” said the 21-year-old, adding that his team aims to be in the top five, although it is still in 15th place after 15 games. “There are very good teams and the competition is great. In Ghana they love the ball. And in most African countries,” he said.

Panagiotis lives with his family. “My mother trades in clothes. My brother is a painter. One of my sisters is a doctor, the other works in a shop with electrical appliances and the third organizes events,” he said.

This is the story of Panagiotis, who was born in Accra to a Greek father and a Ghanaian mother. Who knows; Maybe one day we will see him in Greece.

Source: Sports24.gr