Tribute to Vasilis Hatzipanagis "Vasia"

 

Vasilis Hatzipanagis (Greek: Βασίλης Χατζηπαναγής, born 26 October 1954) is a Greek former professional footballer. He played as a midfielder for Iraklis Thessaloniki in the Greek Alpha Ethniki and Pakhtakor Tashkent in the Soviet Supreme League. He also played for Greece and the Soviet Union(USSR) national side.

Hatzipanagis is widely acclaimed among Greek and international football aficionados as one of the preeminent Greek footballers of all time. Despite his undeniable talent, his career was marred by contractual controversies, which led to his perpetual underappreciation. Numerous sources have bestowed upon him the epithet of "the Greek Maradona," underscoring his skill and influence on the game. Notably, on 22 June 1984, he received the prestigious invitation to join the World XI, a team comprising esteemed football legends from around the globe, further solidifying his status as a luminary of the sport.

Career Summary:

Pakhtakor:

Hatzipanagis is the right player

Hatzipanagis was born in 1954 in Tashkent (capital city of Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic), to Greek political refugees. His father was Greek-Cypriot from Makrasyka, and his mother was from Constantinople. Pakhtakor discovered his talent when he was only 17 years old(1972), when he made his professional debut as footballer, but cause the law of Soviet Union was very strict those years first he needs to take Soviet citizenship. A story of a real Legend starts here. He earned promotion to the higher league at his first year there. He stayed till 1975 with 96 total appearances and 22 goals scored.

Iraklis Thessaloniki:

After the dark years of Greek military junta(1967-1974), Hatzipanagis signed for Iraklis at 1975 as a big talent and he filled the stadium even from his first match at December 1975. He loved and be loved from Iraklis fans but the other main reason who never left the club was cause his contract was too heavy and impossible to break, those years was very difficult something like this happened. Despite his desire to test his skills at one better league and interest from Lazio, Arsenal, Porto and Stuttgart, the club's board feared the consequences of selling the crowd favourite, and Hatzipanagis stayed at Iraklis until 1990. He also watched from opposite big clubs at Greece like Olympiacos and Panathinaikos. Olympiacos reached very close to sign Vasia at their team, in the same period he had argument with Iraklis at court, he earned first round but lost at Iraklis appeal. Only experience outside Greece was in the summer of 1980, he played abroad in the National Soccer League with Toronto Panhellenic.

USSR National Team:

He was called up to the Soviet Union under-19 squad. He was promoted to the senior squad and represented the Soviet Union Olympic team in the 1976 qualifying tournament. His debut was made in a 3–0 home win against Yugoslavia. He even managed to score his team's last goal in his debut. Hatzipanagis featured in three more matches (two matches against Iceland and one against Norway). However, despite being told by national coach Konstantin 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 great Oleg Blokhin – to move to the land of his fathers.

Greece National Team:

Another highlight for Hatzipanagis was his first appearance for the Greece, in a friendly match against Poland at the Leoforos Alexandras Stadium in May 1976. The Athens crowd were bewitched by the long-haired wonder, who seemed to do whatever he wanted with the ball. 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: he played for 20 minutes in the friendly match against Ghana on 14 December 1999 - where he was honored by the Hellenic Football Federation for his overall contribution to the game of football.

In November 2003, to celebrate UEFA's 50th anniversary, he was selected as Greece's Golden Player of the past 50 years by the Hellenic Football Federation. 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."

More photos and Video from this Legend: