Dimitrios Konstantopoulos ( el, Δημήτριος Κωνσταντόπουλος; born 29 November 1978) is a Greek former international
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
player who played as a
goalkeeper.
After playing amateur football with
Iraklis Ampelokipi, Konstantopoulos signed his first professional contract with
Kalamata in 1996, where he made 12 appearances in six years for the club, with a spell at
Egaleo
Aigaleo or Egaleo ( el, Αιγάλεω ) is a suburban municipality in the western part of Athens, belonging to the West Athens regional administrative unit. It takes its name from Mount Aigaleo. Its population was 69,946 at the 2011 census.
Ge ...
yielding three further appearances between 2001 and 2002. He moved to Portuguese side
Farense
Sporting Clube Farense, simply known as Farense, is a Portuguese professional association football, football club based in Faro, Portugal, Faro in the Faro District, district of the same name and the region of Algarve. Founded in 1910, the club wi ...
after this, before joining
Hartlepool United in October 2003. After making 117 league appearances for Hartlepool, Konstantopoulos opted to switch to
Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...
in 2007. However, he was unable to hold down a first team place, and, after loan spells with
Nottingham Forest,
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...
(twice) and
Cardiff City
Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...
between 2008 and 2009, Konstantopoulos was released in 2010 having made 31 league appearances for Coventry. He returned to Greece, spending a successful season with
Kerkyra
Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The is ...
before switching to
AEK Athens for the next two seasons. Following AEK's relegation, he was released at the end of his contract, and joined
Middlesbrough in August 2013.
Internationally, Konstantopoulos made nine appearances for the
Greek under-21 side, and made his full international debut for
Greece in 2011; his only senior cap.
Club career
Early career
Konstantopoulos began his professional career with
Kalamata in 1996,
having previously been playing amateur football for
Iraklis Ampelokipi that year.
After making seven appearances in four seasons, he spent just over a season with
Egaleo
Aigaleo or Egaleo ( el, Αιγάλεω ) is a suburban municipality in the western part of Athens, belonging to the West Athens regional administrative unit. It takes its name from Mount Aigaleo. Its population was 69,946 at the 2011 census.
Ge ...
from 2001 to 2001, where he made three appearances.
He then returned to Kalamata, and made another five appearances the following season.
Prior to moving to England, he had been playing in Portugal for
SC Farense
Sporting Clube Farense, simply known as Farense, is a Portuguese professional association football, football club based in Faro, Portugal, Faro in the Faro District, district of the same name and the region of Algarve. Founded in 1910, the club wi ...
.
Hartlepool United
Konstantopoulos was given a trial at
Hartlepool United in 2003 by the then-manager
Neale Cooper
Neale James Cooper (24 November 1963 – 28 May 2018) was a Scottish football player and coach. He played as a midfielder during the 1980s and 1990s, most prominently for the Aberdeen team managed by Alex Ferguson, and later played for Aston ...
.
He signed a permanent contract in October 2003.
Konstantopoulos spent the majority of his first season playing for Hartlepool's reserve team and as a substitute. In the following
2004–05 season, Konstantopoulos finally made his début in the 2–1
League Cup win over
Macclesfield Town
Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020.
Initially kno ...
on 24 August 2004.
Konstantopoulos then made his league début in the 2–1 win against
Colchester United six days later.
Although still second-choice to
Jim Provett
James Robert Provett (born 22 December 1982) is an English former footballer who played as a goalkeeper in the Football League for Hartlepool United and Bury.
Playing career
Jim Provett came through Hartlepool United's youth development progr ...
at that point, he would become number one from the end of October, going on to make a total of 37 appearances that year.
He was part of the Hartlepool United side that reached the fourth round of the
FA Cup in 2005, and he kept 25 clean sheets during Hartlepool's
2005–06 campaign.
Coventry City
Konstantopoulos signed for
Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...
on 30 June 2007, after he rejected a new contract offer from Hartlepool.
He made his debut in Coventry's first match of the season, which was a 4–1 victory over
Barnsley
Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
. Although a regular starter for Coventry for the first half of the season, the arrival of
Kasper Schmeichel
Kasper Peter Schmeichel (born 5 November 1986) is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Nice and the Denmark national team.
Schmeichel began his career with Manchester City, but had loan spells with Darlington, B ...
pushed him to third choice (behind
Andy Marshall),
and Konstantopoulos made his 23rd, and last, appearance of the season on 9 February 2008, in a 1–0 defeat to
Millwall.
Loan to Nottingham Forest
On 24 March 2008 Konstantopoulos signed for
Nottingham Forest on loan until the end of the
2007–08 season.
He then ruptured his Achilles tendon on his first day of training at
The City Ground
The City Ground is a football stadium in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England, on the banks of the River Trent. It has been home to Nottingham Forest Football Club since 1898 and has a capacity of 30,445.
The stadium was a venue when En ...
.
Loan to Swansea City
On 24 October 2008, Konstantopoulos signed for
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...
on a one-month emergency loan deal, after Swansea's first choice keeper
Dorus de Vries
Dorus de Vries (born 29 December 1980) is a Dutch former association football, footballer who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper.
De Vries began his professional career in his native the Netherlands with Telstar (football ...
suffered a double fracture to his jaw against
Queens Park Rangers. He made his Swansea début against
Doncaster Rovers on 1 November, saving a penalty late in the match. He extended his loan spell by a month later in November, having made two further appearances. His form for Swansea led to manager
Roberto Martinez
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
stating that he wished to keep Konstantopoulos permanently in December. After one further appearance, he briefly returned to Coventry on 2 January 2009 after being recalled due to Coventry's injury problems, before rejoining Swansea on loan four days later until the end of the month. Although Coventry and Swansea agreed a deal that would see Konstantopoulos remain in Wales until the end of the season, issues with the paperwork meant that the
Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
refused to allow the extension. He thus returned to Coventry having made five appearances for Swansea in total.
Loan to Cardiff City
Three days after returning to Coventry, Konstantopoulos was again loaned out, this time to Swansea's local rivals
Cardiff City
Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...
until the end of the season as cover for
Finland international
Peter Enckelman who was ruled out for up to two months after undergoing knee surgery. With second choice goalkeeper
Tom Heaton also being ruled out through injury, Konstantopoulos was handed his debut on 22 February against
Wolverhampton Wanderers, a match which ended in a 2–2 draw after Konstantopoulos scored an own goal after dropping a cross from Wolves midfielder
Kyel Reid
Kyel Romane Reid (born 26 November 1987) is an English professional footballer who plays as a winger for Beaconsfield Town.
Career West Ham
Born in South London, Reid joined West Ham United in July 2004 and is a product of the West Ham United ...
into his own net. Konstantopoulos remained in goal for the following games, but made another error in a 2–0 defeat to
Norwich City, when he failed to clear a long pass and was tackled by
Dave Mooney
David Mooney (born 30 October 1984) is an Irish footballer who has played for several clubs in Ireland and the United Kingdom. As of 2019, he was playing as a striker for Leinster Senior League side Lucan United.
Club career Shamrock Rovers
M ...
to concede the first goal of the game. After Konstantopoulos suffered a foot injury in March, Cardiff manager
Dave Jones signed
Stuart Taylor on loan from
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
; although Konstantopoulos remained with Cardiff for the rest of the season, he did not play again for the club, and he returned to Coventry at the end of the season having made a total of six appearances.
Return to Coventry City
Konstantopoulos remained with Coventry City for the start of the
2009–10 season, and made his first appearance in a year for the club in the 1–0 League Cup defeat to Hartlepool on 12 August 2009. Following an injury to first choice goalkeeper
Keiren Westwood
Keiren Westwood (born 23 October 1984) is a professional footballer who last played as a goalkeeper for Queens Park Rangers. Born in England, he played international football for the Republic of Ireland.
Club career Manchester City
Westwood was ...
during a match against
West Brom on 24 October, Konstantopoulos was brought on as a substitute and helped the club to their first clean sheet in eleven games. Although stating an intention to fight for a first team place, he made just two more appearances before Westwood returned to the team on 21 November.
His next appearance came in a 1–1 draw with
Portsmouth in the FA Cup on 2 January 2010; although he drew praise from
BBC Sport for his performance in this match, it would also prove to be his last game for Coventry.
He was released at the end of the season after his contract expired, having made 27 appearances for the club.
Kerkyra
After seven years abroad, Konstantopoulos returned to the
Greek Super League with
Kerkyra
Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The is ...
.
He made his début in Kerkyra's opening game of the season, which was a 2–1 victory against
AEK Athens at the
Panpeloponnesian Stadium
Pampeloponnisiako Stadium ( el, Παμπελοποννησιακό Στάδιο, "Pan-Peloponnese Stadium") is a stadium located in Patras, Greece. The stadium was originally built 1981 as National Stadium of Patras (Εθνικό Στάδιο Π� ...
on 29 August. His good form resulted in him being called up to the
Greece national football team by coach
Fernando Santos, and Konstantopoulos made his senior international début in the 3–1 win against
Malta in June 2011.
He finished the season having made 30 appearances for Kerkyra.
AEK Athens
On 13 July 2011, Konstantopoulos signed a two-year deal with AEK Athens. He suffered a spinal cord injury in a
Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
match against
FC Dinamo Tbilisi
FC Dinamo Tbilisi ( ka, დინამო თბილისი, ) is a Georgian professional football club based in Tbilisi, Georgia, that competes in the Erovnuli Liga, the top flight of Georgian football.
Dinamo Tbilisi was one of the mo ...
on 25 August; although able to play in AEK's next Europa League match on 15 September, which was against
RSC Anderlecht
; french: Les Mauves et Blancs)
, short name = R.S.C.A.
, founded =
, ground = Constant Vanden Stock Stadium
, capacity = 22,500
, owntitle = Chairman
, owner = Wouter Vandenhaute
, manager = Brian Riemer
...
, he was forced to undergo surgery two weeks later.
Konstantopoulos started the season as second-choice behind
Giannis Arabatzis
Giannis Arabatzis ( el, Γιάννης Αραμπατζής; born 28 May 1984) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
Career
AEK Athens
Arabatzis made his first cap against rival team Panathinaikos, and impressed ...
in the Super League, but became number one in March.
He spent the
2012–13 season as AEK's primary goalkeeper, but after making 24 appearances that season, and 39 league appearances in total,
he was released following AEK's relegation.
Middlesbrough
2013–14 season
On 16 August 2013, Konstantopoulos signed a short-term deal with
Middlesbrough until January 2014, which was later extended to the end of the season. He had to wait for January's FA Cup defeat to
Hull City on 4 January 2014 to make his debut, with
Shay Given having joined on loan when first-choice
Jason Steele injured his ankle, conceding two goals in the process. He then made his full league debut against
Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
on 8 March 2014 in a 2–0 victory.
After Given returned to
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
,
Aitor Karanka opted to use Konstantopoulos as his number one goalkeeper, ahead of Steele and
Tomas Mejias, and Middlesbrough opened contract talks with Konstantopoulos in April 2014. On 1 May 2014, Konstantopoulos signed a new one-year contract with Middlesbrough after making 13 appearances.
2014–15 season
He remained number one for the
2014–15 season, and was described by
Sky Sports as being "instrumental" to Middlesbrough's form at the end of 2014.
On 19 January 2015 Middlesbrough head coach
Aitor Karanka claimed that Konstantopoulos was the "perfect" squad member after the 2–0 win against
Huddersfield Town, after conceding 12 goals in 23 matches and keeping 13 clean sheets. Middlesbrough had let in 17 goals in 26 matches; the fewest in the Championship. Konstantopoulos extended his contract with Middlesbrough in February 2015, although the terms were undisclosed. He emerged as Middlesbrough's first-choice keeper for 2014/15, despite the permanent arrival of Mejias from
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
.
On 8 May 2015 in the
Championship play-offs
The English Football League Championship play-offs are a series of play-off matches contested by the association football teams finishing from third to sixth in the EFL Championship table and are part of the English Football League play-offs. , ...
, Middlesbrough played
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
and came away with a 2–1 win, with
Fernando Amorebieta scoring in injury time. They came away with a win and a one-goal advantage.
Alan Judge's booming shot hit the cross-bar out of nowhere, and replays confirmed Konstantopoulos' fingertips stopped the ball from going in. On 25 May 2015, Konstantopoulos played in the
2015 Championship play-off final, where
Norwich City claimed an instant return to the
Premier League as they recorded a 2–0 play-off final victory against Middlesbrough at Wembley.
2015–16 season
On 17 December 2015, Middlesbrough head coach
Aitor Karanka said that Konstantopoulos played a big part of that solidity and the first place of the club so far in the Championship, and with the keeper having made 20 league appearances this season, he activated a clause in his contract to stay on Teesside for another year. In 24 league matches this season he kept 15 clean sheets, including eight in a row. He was part of the record-breaking Boro rearguard who racked up nine consecutive league clean sheets, smashing a 30-year club milestone. On 29 April 2016, in a 2–2 away game against
Birmingham reached 100 appearances with the jersey of Middlesbrough. On 7 May 2016, in the very last matchday following their 1–1 draw with rivals
Brighton
Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
he celebrated with the club, after seven long years in the
Championship, the return to England's top flight. Furthermore, he kept 22 clean sheets in
this season setting a new record for the club.
2016–17 season
Following promotion to the Premier League, Konstantopoulos' future at Middlesbrough remained uncertain; with the signings of
Victor Valdés
The name Victor or Viktor may refer to:
* Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname
Arts and entertainment
Film
* ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film
* ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...
and
Brad Guzan, this took him down to third-choice goalkeeper. However, most journalists stated that Konstantopoulos should be given a chance in top flight football, despite his advancing age and the fact he has no Premier League experience. On 28 January 2017, Konstantopoulos made his first appearance of the season, keeping goal behind a strong line up in a 1–0
FA Cup fourth round win against
Accrington Stanley F.C.
2017–18 season
Despite reports in the off-season stating that Konstantopoulos had been released by Middlesbrough after four years and claims that he would retire, on 22 June 2017, he signed a one-year contract extension. With the signing of
Darren Randolph
Darren Edward Andrew Randolph (born 12 May 1987) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club AFC Bournemouth and the Republic of Ireland national team. He has previously played for the Republic of Ir ...
, Konstantopoulos remained second-choice goalkeeper, and did not make a single appearance during the league campaign.
2018–19 season
New manager
Tony Pulis decided that Konstantopoulos was worthy of signing a new contract, and did so, signing another one-year contract extension. On 5 January 2019, Konstantopoulos became the oldest ever to play for the club in a 5–0 win
FA Cup match against
Peterborough United He was released by Middlesbrough at the end of the 2018–19 season.
Second spell in Hartlepool United
On 2 December 2019, after six months without a club, he re-joined
National League club Hartlepool until the end of the season. The 41-year-old shot stopper had been training with Pools for the majority of the season following his release from Boro. Dimi made one appearance for Pools, in the
FA Trophy
The Football Association Challenge Trophy, commonly known as the FA Trophy, is a men's football knockout cup competition run by and named after the English Football Association and competed for primarily by semi-professional teams. The compet ...
, and became the oldest player to ever play for the club at 41 years and 15 days old.
Thornaby
On 25 August 2020, Konstantopoulos signed for
Northern Football League
The Northern League is a men's football league in north east England. Having been founded in 1889, it is the second-oldest football league in the world still in existence after the English Football League.
It contains two divisions; Division ...
side
Thornaby for the 2020–21 season.
International career
On 17 November 2010, Konstantopoulos was called up to the
Greece national football team for a match against
Austria. On 6 April 2011, he made his only appearance for the national team against
Malta in a
UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier.
Coaching career
In August 2021, it was announced that Konstantopoulos would become Hartlepool United's goalkeeper coach following the departure of
Ross Turnbull Ross or ROSS may refer to:
People
* Clan Ross, a Highland Scottish clan
* Ross (name), including a list of people with the surname or given name Ross, as well as the meaning
* Earl of Ross, a peerage of Scotland
Places
* RoSS, the Republic of Sout ...
.
Dimi left the club on 8 June 2022.
Personal life
In 2016, Dimi opened a Greek restaurant in
Middlesbrough called Great Greek Modern Restaurant. However, in January 2020, it was announced that the restaurant had closed down due to unpaid bills.
Career statistics
Honours
Hartlepool United
*
Football League Two runners-up:
2006–07
Middlesbrough
*
Championship runners-up:
2015–16
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Konstantopoulos, Dimitrios
1978 births
Living people
Footballers from Thessaloniki
Greek footballers
Greek expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in Portugal
Expatriate footballers in England
Expatriate footballers in Wales
Association football goalkeepers
Kalamata F.C. players
Egaleo F.C. players
Hartlepool United F.C. players
Coventry City F.C. players
Swansea City A.F.C. players
Cardiff City F.C. players
S.C. Farense players
AEK Athens F.C. players
A.O. Kerkyra players
Super League Greece players
English Football League players
Middlesbrough F.C. players
Greece international footballers
Greece under-21 international footballers
Hartlepool United F.C. non-playing staff