Kostas Davourlis
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| Personal information | |||
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| Height | 0.02 m (1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Central Attacking Midfielder | ||
Kostas Davourlis (Greek: Κώστας Δαβουρλής) (born 4 January1948), popularly nicknamed The Black Prince, is a former Greek footballer (central attacking midfielder) born in Agyia, Patras. A gifted and talented player, he was voted by Greek sports magazine "Ethnospor" as one of the 50 best Greek footballplayers ever.
Having gained fame in Greece as the creative playmaker of Panachaiki FC, Davourlis attracted even more attention during the 1973 season, when he helped his team become the first Greek countryside footballclub to ever qualify for a European competition (the 1974 UEFA Cup).
Davourlis was famed for his technical ability, his ball skill, his creative passes and his powerful shot in or outside the box, while his leadership was exemplary. He was also a notable free kick taker, as demonstrated by his numerous goals from outside the penalty area.
In spite of the fact his career had a rather bitter end for a player his caliber, he is still worshiped by the fans all over the Peloponnese. The Panachaiki stadium bears his name since 1992, when he dececed due to a heart attack.
Club Career
Early career, Panionios Patron and Panachaiki 1962-1971
Having been discovered by Panachaiki former player and scouter Spyros Voulgarakis, Davourlis began his playing career at the age of fourteen with a Panachaiki subsidiary team, Panionios Patron. Two years later he joined the senior team and contributed to Panachaiki's battle to reach the Greek first division. His most notable achievement at that time was the fact that he became the first Greek footballplayer to be selected for the national team while playing for a second division team.
Finally, after a couple of unsuccessfull attempts, Panachaiki makes it to the "big" division in 1969 and Davourlis' talent shines wide. However, the team is involved in a bribe scandal and sinks again in the lower division. Fortunately enough for Davourlis, they are back a year later and the Black Prince of Patras is the leader of Panachaiki's rise towards glory.
Panachaiki and Olympiacos 1971-1978
In the 1972 season, Davourlis scores 15 goals and Panachaiki finishes sixth. The best is still to come though. After an amazing 1973 season in which he scored again 15 goals, including a hat trick in Toumba Stadium against championship contender PAOK, he achieves with Panachaiki something that no other Greek countryside club ever had at the time: participation to a European competition, for instance the 1974 UEFA Cup. In 1974, Davourlis' performances and leadership are still very good but rumors related to his transfert affect him considerably. Panachaiki proves to be unable to become a real threat for the local powerhouses finishing once again sixth. At the end of a season during which he scored 11 times in the Championship and once in the UEFA Cup, Davourlis gets transferred to Olympiacos. The transfer fee was 9.25m Drachmas, the highest in Greek football history at the time.
At Olympiacos, Davourlis was one of the top players of the team, along with Giorgos Delikaris, Yves Triantafyllos and Julio Losada. His team won one Championship title and reached two consecutive Greek Cup finals, winning through his goal in 1975 and losing in 1976. Nevertheless, his heart was travelling somewhere else.
Panachaiki 1978-1985
In 1978, when Davourlis was transferred back to Panachaiki, almost nothing in Patras reminded the glorious team that fascinated Greece in the first half of the decade. Davourlis would of course increase the level of the team, but the results remained poor, leading to the club's relegation in 1981 and once again in 1985. He ended his career with Korinthos FC in 1986. Later on he worked for Panachaiki as a scouter discovering many talents till the year he died, the most famous of which is Grigoris Georgatos.
International career
Davourlis earned his first cap with the Greek national football team in 23 July 1969, coming on as a substitute in the 75th minute of a friendly match against the Australia. Many
Appearances for the Greek national football team
- 1. 23/07/1969 Αustralia - Greece 2-2 (substitute in 75’) - friendly match
- 2. 18/06/1971 Greece - Μάλτα 2-0 (90 minutes)- scored in the 60’- 1972 UEFA European Football Championship qualifying
- 3. 06/07/1971 Mexico - Greece 1-1 (substitute 45’) - scored in the 86’- friendly match
- 4. 30/09/1971 Greece - Μexico 0-1 (90 minutes) - friendly match
- 5. 01/12/1971 Greece - England 0-2 (substitute in 73’) - 1972 UEFA European Football Championship qualifying
- 6. 16/02/1972 Greece - Holland 0-5 (substitute in 45’) - friendly match
- 7. 19/11/1972 Yougoslavia - Greece 1-0 (substitute 73’) - World Cup 74 qual.
- 8. 06/05/1976 Greece - Poland 1-0 (90 minutes) - friendly match
- 9. 22/09/1976 Greece - Ιsrael 0-1 (90 minutes) - friendly match
- 10. 09/10/1976 Greece - Hungary 1-1 (substitute in 58’) - World Cup 78 qual.
- 11. 26/01/1977 Ιsrael - Greece 1-1 (substitute in 85’) - friendly match
Statistics
- 1 Greek Championship Title (1975) [1] [2]
- 1 Greek football Cup (1975)
- He scored a total of 95 goals in his career
- He scored a total of 22 goals by free kick in his career, second best record behind the one of Kostas Frantzeskos