Kostas Nestoridis
Greek footballer and manager (1930–2023)
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Kostas Nestoridis (Greek: Κώστας Νεστορίδης, 15 March 1930 – 12 December 2023) was a Greek professional footballer who played as a forward and later a manager. He is regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of AEK Athens. A prolific and technically gifted forward, he emerged as the top scorer of the Greek championship a record five consecutive times and remains among the all-time top scorers of AEK. Renowned for his dribbling, creativity and set-piece ability, he is widely considered one of the most iconic figures in Greek football.
|
Signed photograph of Kostas Nestoridis | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Konstantinos Nestoridis[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 15 March 1930[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Drama, Greece | ||
| Date of death | 12 December 2023 (aged 93)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Athens, Greece | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1945–1946 | Enosi Agios Nikolaos Kallithea | ||
| 1946–1948 | Hellas Moschato | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1948–1955 | Panionios | 3 | (0) |
| 1955–1966 | AEK Athens | 208 | (172) |
| 1966–1967 | South Melbourne Hellas | 36 | (33) |
| 1967 | Vyzas Megara | 2 | (0) |
| 1968 | Aias Salamina | 7 | (2) |
| Total | 256 | (207) | |
| International career | |||
| 1950–1962 | Greece | 17 | (3) |
| 1951–1956 | Greece military | 2 | (0) |
| 1960 | Greece Olympic | 3 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1966 | South Melbourne Hellas | ||
| 1967–1968 | South Melbourne Hellas | ||
| 1968 | Aias Salamina | ||
| 1968–1969 | Kallithea | ||
| 1969–1970 | PAO Thriamvos Athens | ||
| 1970–1971 | Paniliakos | ||
| 1971–1972 | Kallithea | ||
| 1972–1973 | Vyzas Megara | ||
| 1973–1974 | Aias Salamina | ||
| 1976–1977 | AEK Athens U20 | ||
| 1978–1979 | Kallithea | ||
| 1981 | Pandramaikos | ||
| 1981 | Kallithea | ||
| 1981–1983 | AEK Athens (assistant) | ||
| 1983 | AEK Athens (interim) | ||
| 1984 | AEK Athens | ||
| 1987 | AE Kos | ||
| 1987–1988 | Aris Agios Konstantinos | ||
| 1988 | Kallithea | ||
| 1989 | Aias Salamina | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Born in Drama to a refugee family, Nestoridis experienced severe poverty in his early years, which shaped both his life and career. He began his senior career with Panionios, where he won the AFCA league in 1951, before moving to AEK Athens in 1955, though a contractual dispute led to a two-year suspension. After making his official debut in 1957, he became the club’s leading figure, forming a notable attacking partnership with Mimis Papaioannou and playing a key role in the conquest of the Greek Championship in 1963.
Nestoridis later served as a player–manager for South Melbourne Hellas in Australia, where he won a state championship, before ending his playing career in Greece. Internationally, he earned 17 caps for the Greece national football team. Following his retirement, he had a varied managerial career, including spells at AEK Athens in both assistant and interim roles.
Early life
Nestoridis was born on 15 March 1930 in Drama and was the youngest of three children of the Pontian Greek[2] Giorgos and Kyriaki, who arrived in Thrace as refugees after the Asia Minor Catastrophe. He and his siblings, Christos and Nopi, experienced severe financial hardship and the struggles of refugee life during their childhood. The work difficulties that his parents repeatedly faced, affected the young Nestoridis and often influenced his decisions throughout his football career. With his family, he traveled from the dirt roads of Drama, to the fields of Kallithea in search of labor and later to the fields of Preveza, where they took refuge during the Occupation.[3] There, his talent in football quickly attracted attention. Even though he loved playing football, it always came second in his priorities, as the need for assistance in the family finances came first, something that forced Nestoridis to work from a young age as a polisher, cigarette seller, shoemaker assistant and shepherd during his days at Preveza. After the end of the World War II, the return and resettlement of the family in Kallithea marked his most active involvement with football. In his neighborhood there was an independent club called PAO Kallithea. They were not a recognizable team, but they provided a football kit and lemonade at the half time for their players, things that were almost considered a luxury for the then standards of the young Nestoridis. His debut, which was marked by scoring five goals, began to spread a legend around his name.[4] That legend did not take long to spread beyond Kallithea and reached the ears of Kostas Negrepontis, who was looking for a partner to Kleanthis Maropoulos in the offense of AEK Athens. One Sunday afternoon in Kallithea, Negrepontis, impressed by his dribbling skills and shooting technique, invited Nestoridis to Nea Filadelfeia for a tryout. AEK's officials were impressed by his talent, but did not ask him to sign a sport's card and responded to his persistent calls for employment with some vague promises of appointment to the Water Company. After about a month, where nothing materialized, Nestoridis left AEK and football training, giving priority in finding a solution to his intense livelihood problem.[5]
Club career
Early years
Nestoridis made his next step in his football career on a night in 1946, when his neighbor and friend, Kostas Sotiriadis, who was playing for Panionios, met him in Kallithea Square and suggested that he visit Nea Smyrni for another tryout. There, the manager Roussopoulos, having received information from Sotiriadis and impressed by his abilities, made him sign a sport's card, including him in the roster of Panionios. His urgent need for daily work as a cigarette retailer did not allow him to continue training with Panionios.[5]
He occasionally played football in his neighborhood until Karamalengos, the owner of the factory "Indiana" and a member of Hellas Moschato, heard about him. He offered Nestoridis a steady job in his business and offered him to sign in his team.[6] The young Nestoridis, seeing that his two main ambitions, the steady job and football were being realized at the same time, signed a fake sport's card under the name "Brinzos", as was the nickname of his brother, Christos and started playing in Hellas Moschato. The team became champions of their division in Piraeus Football Clubs Association, with Nestoridis scoring 48 goals and becoming their star player. He played for the club from Moschato until 1948. His career there ended abruptly, as before the start of the crucial match for the championship against Palia Kokkinia, a rival fan recognized Nestoridis and started calling out his real name. The officials of Hellas, fearing the revelation of forgery and punishment, did not use him, resulting in the 2–1 defeat and the loss of the championship.[4] Their subsequent efforts to secure a free transfer of Nestoridis from Panionios were also fruitless.[5]
Panionios
Nestoridis stayed for the first time in his career out of football competitions for a year and in 1949 with the exhortation of the former footballer of Olympiacos, Babis Kotridis, he decided to join Panionios. There, he eventually got the chance to play under Negrepontis, who was the manager at the time and they formed a strong friendship. He wore the blue-red jersey for seven years and in 63 appearances he scored 26 goals. During his spell they won their first and only AFCA league title in 1951,[7] where he emerged as the top scorer with seven goals.[8][9] During that season, he also managed to score in the away 2–1 victory against AEK Athens,[10] while he became an international. The following season he reached the final, where they lost to Olympiacos in a replay match as the first match ended in a draw.[11][6] Nevertheless, Nestoridis did not spend beautiful days at the club. The "cliques" of the older players considered him a "outsider" and did not miss the opportunity to fight him, while from the side of the management he was treated simply as a product, that at some point would fill the club's coffers by transferring to one of the big clubs of POK.[5]
In May 1955, AEK Athens organized a "Solidarity Cup" with the earnings of the tournament going for the completion of the works in their stadium.[12] Panionios participated in the tournament and after its end in June, their management pressured him to transfer at Olympiacos or Panathinaikos. He refused and faithful to his refugee origins and in July with the actions of the vice-president of AEK, Vasilis Sevastakis, he signed for the yellow-blacks, who gave him 15,000 drachmas, but without the consent of Panionios. As a result, he was punished by the HFF with a two-year ban from all competitive activities.[13]
AEK Athens
Nestoridis was frustrated, as he waited for his punishment to expire, competing only in friendly matches, with his only distractions being his marriage and the birth of his son. The end of his punishment and his debut with the yellow-black jersey came in September 1957. His arrival at AEK also marked a period of renewal for the club. The managerial duo of the former players Tzanetis and Negrepontis took charge of the club's renewal with the veterans such as Maropoulos, Delavinias and Arvanitis passing the torch to the younger generation of Serafidis, Stamatiadis and Poulis, with Kanakis being the "connecting spot".[5]
"Captain Nestoras", as he was called, immediately established himself at the club and it didn't take him long enough to become a star player domestically. In his second season at the club, he finished as the top scorer of the championship with 21 goals.[14] On 6 December 1959 he scored the first hat-trick in the history of the first national division in an away match against Panegialios.[15] On 9 January 1960, on the eve of the derby against Olympiacos, a photo was published, where Nestoridis was showing the up-right corner of the goalposts of Savvas Theodoridis and saying that if AEK took the kick-off of the match, he would send the ball in that corner, from the first minute. The next day, immediately with the kick-off, Nestoridis scored a goal in the corner he had indicated in the photo.[16] In 1960, Nice and Essen wanted to sign him, but he refused.[17]
On 7 March 1961, the administration of AEK imposed a one-month ban on him, because in the match against Panionios, he showed unsportsmanlike behavior towards his colleagues and the referee, but eventually they took back their decision. He is the only player to become the top scorer of the Greek championship five times in a row. Until today he remains one of the club's highest scoring players, widely regarded as one of the greatest players to ever play for the yellow-blacks. In 1962 alongside the newcomer, Mimis Papaioannou, he formed one of the club's most formidable goalscoring partnerships. Nestoridis is one of only three players in the history of AEK who managed to score five goals in a single league match which he achieved on 2 June 1963 against Iraklis.[18] On 23 June he scored from a direct corner kick in the play-off match against Panathinaikos, which ended 3–3. This resulted in AEK winning their first league title in 23 years and Nestoridis the only Greek Championship of his career.[19][20] In the following summer Austria Wien was intersted in signing him, but he stayed at the Greek club.[21] On 18 September 1963 Nestoridis became the scorer of the first goal of AEK in the UEFA competitions, in the heavy 7–2 defeat against Monaco, for the European Cup.[22] At the end of the season he also won the Greek Cup with AEK.[23][24] In the eight seasons he played for AEK, Nestoridis was always the top scorer of the club with the exception of 1964, when Papaioannou surpassed him. In the summer of 1965, he initially took the decision to leave the club, but the possible departure of Papaioannou made him reconsider and eventually stay for one more season, despite his advanced age.[5]
South Melbourne Hellas
In January 1966,[25] Nestoridis left AEK after almost 11 years of service and being constantly in search of a better life and a more complete professional rehabilitation he moved to Australia and signed for the expatriate South Melbourne Hellas, as a player–manager.[26] Although he was at the age of 36, in his first season at the club, he emerged as the top scorer of the Victorian State League with 21 goals[27] and helped his team to win the title.[28][29] In most of his matches, members of the Greek community, alongside Australian supporters, were gathered and flocked to watch him play. The following year he returned to Greece to finish his career at AEK, but was rejected by the administration of the club, due to his advanced age. He returned to Australia and Hellas Melbourne and scored another 12 goals,[30] with the club finishing in fourth place of the standings.[31][32]
Return to Greece and retirement
In January 1967 Nestoridis returned permanently to Greece and signed for Vyzas Megara. However, he eventually managed to make only two appearances, after it was revealed that his signing date was overdue and thus his transfer was cancelled.[6] Later in the season, he searched for a club and trained successively in Egaleo, Panionios and Ionikos. In February 1968, he signed as a player-manager for Aias Salamina, where he played in the second division.[33] He made his debut on 3 March 1968 in a 2–1 away defeat against PAS Giannina and scored his first goal on 31 March in a home match against AO Chania that ended 2–1. Nestoridis played at the club until 20 April, when he decided to depart and eventually finish his career.[5]
International career
In 1950 Nestoridis volunteered for the Air Force to play for the Greek Military team, where started scoring a lot of goals[34] and participated in the CISM Football Cup. At the end of his two-year term, he declared another four years as recalled and remained in the army for a total of six years. However, in a match with the Italian Military team in 1956, a political issue arose about how an ordinary soldier without being an officer participated in the Military team for so many years. He was then offered a job in the Air Force, but he refused and withdrew from the Military team.[35]
Nestoridis played with Greece a total of 17 times: 2 as a player of Panionios and 15 as a player of AEK Athens, scoring 3 goals.[36] The number of his appearances was very little for a player of his level, as he did not have good relations with the respective selectors of the national team. He made his debut in the blue and white jersey on 14 October 1951.[37]
Managerial career
After his playing career was over, Nestoridis officially began his managerial career. In 1968, Kallithea hired Nestoridis alongside Takis Papoulidis as co-managers late in the season and the duo helped the club to their first-ever promotion to the second division, culminating with a 1–0 win in the extra-time over AO Koropi in a play-off match on 21 June 1969.[38] In 1969 he was the manager of PAO Thriamvos Athens for a season.[39] In 1970 he worked at the bench of Paniliakos for a season. On 23 July 1971 he signed for Kallithea,[40] where spent a season.[41][42] On 9 August 1972 he took over the bench of Vyzas Megara for a season.[43] On 16 August 1973 Nestoridis returned to Aias Salamina solely as their manager.[44] In 1977 he was the manager of the reserve team of AEK, where they won the championship.[45] Later he worked in various clubs such as Kallithea[46] and Pandramaikos.[6]
_Čajkovski.jpg)
In the summer 1981 AEK Athens were in the midst of radical changes, as the owner of the club, Loukas Barlos left and the ownership passed to Andreas Zafiropoulos. At the same time, the manager of the club, Miltos Papapostolou was released[47] and Hans Tilkowski was hired in his place.[48] The unfamiliarity of the German manager regarding the Greek reality required the placement of an assistant next to him, with knowledge and experience from the Greek football, as well as the club itself, which the management found in the person of Nestoridis. The course of the team was disappointing and they were left behind in the standings, which resulted in Tilkowski being sacked and replaced by the winner of the 1978 domestic double, Zlatko Čajkovski.[49] Nestoridis remained as the assistant of the new manager, being the connecting link between the previous and the current technical leadership, while also handling the situation in the team's locker rooms. The Čajkovski-Nestoridis duo somewhat fixed the situation by bringing AEK in an eventual 4th-place finish, five points from the top. However, the return of "Čik" at the wheel was nothing similar to his first spell. In the summer of 1982, AEK were preparing for the upcoming season by Čajkovski and Nestoridis, while Michalis Arkadis took over as the club's president. As the season progressed, the relationship between the technical leadership and the management was becoming confusing, with Čajkovski showing that his advanced age made him lose his ambition for the team. In all this confusion, Nestoridis tried to maintain the balances within the team. Eventually, on 9 January 1983, AEK were defeated by 3–2 at home against OFI, while the memory of the 5-goal defeat at the hands of PAOK at Toumba Stadium three matchdays ago was still fresh. The indignation towards Čajkovski was obvious, who he was removed from the team's bench and Nestoridis took over the technical leadership.[50] As it turned out, his managerial tenure in the team was interim, since about forty days later Helmut Senekowitsch was hired.[51] In the meanwhile Nestoridis had made three wins and two draws in the away matches and delivered the club in the second place with close distance from the top. The hiring of the Austrian manager, made him feel rather sidelined, which made him temporarily resign from the technical staff.[52]
The following summer, a series of reshuffles at the management of AEK took place, Zafiropoulos assigned the management of the club to Lefteris Panagidis. The Cypriot businessman who was a connoisseur and a fan of English football hired the British John Barnwell as manager.[53] Barnwell stayed on the yellow-black bench for just 12 matches[54] and the recently fired Senekowitsch was called as his replacement.[55] The second spell of "Seki" lasted for only eight games, scoring just two wins. After two consecutive home draws, the contract of the Austrian manager was also terminated and on February 1984 Nestoridis was called to take action in the technical leadership of the club.[56] He remained on the team's bench until the summer and achieving five wins, one draw and four defeats, where AEK finished at the 7th place, recording one of their worst performances in the league.[52]
After football
In June 2017 Nestoridis opened his football academies, under the name Nestoras FC.[57] His wax figure is in the new Agia Sophia Stadium museum with other wax effigies of people who have connected their name with AEK from various positions.[58] His name also is honoured on one of the four pillars of the Stadium, alongside other important figures of the club's history such as Stelios Serafidis, Mimis Papaioannou and Thomas Mavros.[59]
Personal life
Nestoridis lived in Kallithea with his wife, Eleni and their sons, Panagiotis, Antonis and Giorgos, who maintains the family's Pro-Po business.[60] He had health problems and avoided publicity. On 16 March 2022, he was tested positive for COVID-19 and was hospitalized at Sotiria General Hospital, from where he tried to escape,[61] but a few days later he recovered and got out five days later.[62] Οn 30 September 2022, he attended the inauguration of the Agia Sophia Stadium, where he was honored.[63] Οn 18 November 2023, he had a brief hospitalization after a fall at his home.[64]
Death
Nestoridis died on the morning of 12 December 2023, after a long-term struggle with health issues at the age of 93.[65] On 16 December, at the Church of the Holy Trinity next to Agia Sophia Stadium, his remains lied in state, before his funeral in Kallithea Cemetery.[66]
Style of play
"All the great players I saw, including Di Stéfano, Puskás and Pelé, did things humanly. What I saw Nestoridis doing is neither taught nor learned."
From a young age, Nestoridis, despite being largely self-taught, was noted for his natural technical ability and exceptional ball control. Contemporary accounts describe him as a highly skillful and creative forward, capable of beating defenders with close control, sudden bursts of acceleration and feints. His trademark element was his body flexibility and especially his pronounced waist movement, which allowed him to feint and dribble past opponents effectively.[68][69] His playing style combined balance, agility and precision, allowing him to execute difficult movements and finishes with consistency. Nestoridis was particularly renowned for his set-piece ability. He was a specialist in free-kicks and corner kicks, having scored 17 goals from direct corner kicks.[70]
He was also known for his confidence and insight, reportedly announcing in advance how he would maneuver, shoot and score, which further contributed to his reputation among fans and opponents. His fame inspired the laïko musician, Vangelis Perpiniadis, who despite being a supporter of Olympiacos, to write and perform a popular song of the time dedicated to him.[71]
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League[a] | AFCA League | Cup[b] | Continental[c] | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Panionios | 1948–49 | Panhellenic Championship | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
| 1949–50 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 5 | ||
| 1950–51 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 7 | ||
| 1951–52 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 5 | ||
| 1952–53 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 5 | ||
| 1953–54 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 6 | ||
| 1954–55 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 4 | ||
| AEK Athens | 1955–56 | Panhellenic Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1956–57 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1957–58 | 22 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 21 | ||
| 1958–59 | 18 | 21 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 26 | ||
| 1959–60 | Alpha Ethniki | 28 | 32 | — | 6 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 42 | ||
| 1960–61 | 28 | 27 | — | 5 | 13 | 4 | 4 | 37 | 44 | |||
| 1961–62 | 29 | 29 | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 29 | |||
| 1962–63 | 30 | 24 | — | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 28 | |||
| 1963–64 | 24 | 10 | — | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 29 | 15 | |||
| 1964–65 | 26 | 17 | — | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 30 | 20 | |||
| 1965–66 | 3 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | |||
| South Melbourne Hellas | 1966 | Victorian State League | 20 | 21 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 20 | 21 | ||
| 1967 | 16 | 12 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 16 | 12 | ||||
| Vyzas Megara | 1967–68 | Alpha Ethniki | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Aias Salamina | 1967–68 | Beta Ethniki | 7 | 2 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | |
| Career total | 256 | 207 | 79 | 38 | 48 | 44 | 8 | 6 | 391 | 295 | ||
- Also includes play-off matches.
- Includes Greek Cup, Australia Cup
- Also includes Balkans Cup.
International
- Scores and results list Greece's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Nestoridis goal.[72]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 October 1957 | Leoforos Alexandras Stadium, Athens, Greece |  France | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1958 Mediterranean Cup |
| 2 | 10 November 1957 | Partizan Stadium, Belgrade, Yugoslavia |  Yugoslavia | 1–3 | 1–4 | 1958 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 18 October 1962 | Leoforos Alexandras Stadium, Athens, Greece |  Ethiopia | 2–0 | 3–2 | Friendly |
Honours
Panionios[7]
- Athens FCA Championship: 1951
South Melbourne[28]
- Victorian State League: 1966
Individual
Records
- First player to score five goals in a single Greek league match. He scored all the goals for his team in the 5–0 at home against Iraklis on 2 June 1963.[18]
- Most Greek championship top scorer awards: five (from 1959 to 1963, shared with Antonis Antoniadis)
- Most consecutive Greek championship top scorer awards: five (from 1959 to 1963)[73]
