Rovers have managed to squeeze in a late signing, following yesterday’s closure of the international transfer window, by adding goalkeeper Antonis Stergiakis to the ranks at Ewood Park.
The 21-year old goalie, who moves to East Lancashire for a reported £100,000, according to Bulgarian sources – which includes potential future incentives being reported as part of the deal, as well as a sell-on clause – has mainly been brought to the club to provide backup and competition for fellow summer signing Thomas Kaminski, who joined Rovers, back in August, which could open the door for Andy Fisher to depart on loan during the domestic window that has opened until the 16th October. The former Olympiacos and AS Roma trialist – whose deal at Bulgarian Premier League side Slavia Sofia was set to expire in June 2021 – has penned a three-year deal with the Blues – which the club can extend to four if they wish – as he looks to grow his budding career in football’s homeland.
Although only young, especially in goalkeeping terms, Rovers’ latest recruit has been in the firing line as a number one since the age of 17. The 6’5” goalie emerged out of the academy of his hometown club, Aris Thessaloniki in 2015 – a previous club of former Rover, Patrick Valéry – before spending some time in the Greek third tier with Thyella Filota during the 2014-15 season. During his brief spell with the Greek side, Stergiakis amassed seven appearances for the first-team before Hellenic powerhouses Olympiacos came sniffing for his services, despite only being 16 at the time. Despite undoubtedly impressive the record 45 Greek Super League Champions, the brave Stergiakis took a brave gamble so early on in his career, by favouring an approach from now-former club, Slavia Sofia of the Bulgarian First League. After linking up with ‘The Whites’ in August 2015, Stergiakis became a firm fixture in Sofia’s under-19 team as they stormed to the U19’s league title by the end of the 2015-16 campaign. Déjà vu soon struck for Stergiakis as he received another trial offer in the summer of 2016, this time from Italian giants AS Roma, yet despite training with the three-time Serie A winners, the then-17-year old again rejected an offer of a permanent move in favour of first-team football with Sofia.
Unlike in the previous summer however, the ‘Greek Freak’ – to steal a term from the NBA – was rewarded for his loyalty and his impressive performances in the youth team, by being offered his debut in a 4-0 loss to Levski Sofia, which came in bizarre circumstances. Despite being 3-0 down, Stergiakis was brought on to replace fellow ‘keeper and team captain Georgi Petkov who was replaced due to injury. Sadly, for Stergiakis, his 14-minute debut couldn’t be sealed with a clean sheet as Bozhidar Kraev rounded off the scoring at 4-0 for the five-time UEFA Europa League Quarter Finalists. After making his debut for ‘The Whites’, Stergiakis would go on to make eight more appearances during 2016-17 in both the league and cup, before being hauled off injured in his ninth and final outing of the campaign.
The 2017-18 season proved to be a breakthrough season for the Greek as he began to establish himself as a regular in the Slavia side. After playing in 22 of the 32 league games – including four in the cup – Stergiakis’ breakthrough season yielded positive results in the youngster’s development as he aided his teammates to sealing their first Bulgarian FA Cup since the 1995-96 season, which they won as part of a double alongside the league – a time where our latest signing wasn’t even born! Stergiakis’ performances throughout Slavia Sofia’s season of silverware earnt him a spot as a nominee, alongside 97 other prospects for the prestigious Golden Boy award for 2017. Despite appearing on the list besides a whole host of budding talent, including the likes of former Rovers loanee Tosin Adarabioyo, current Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans and AC Milan ‘keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, the award was eventually awarded to 2020’s beaten Champions League Finalist, Kylian Mbappé. Although Stergiakis was a huge outsider to claim the prize, he did earn the honour of being only the second ever Greek to be nominated for the award – with the other being current FC Twente loanee, Lazaros Lamprou.
Despite the Greek’s appearances dropping from 26 to 18 during the 2018-19 domestic season, his experience grew on a broader scale as Slavia Sofia embarked on their second UEFA Europa League campaign in three years, after they were previous given a slot in the 2016-17 edition’s first qualifying round – which they failed to advance from – following CSKA Sofia’s European ban and Levski Sofia’s promotion into the second qualifying round. This time around, Sofia were able to get one step further, into the second qualifying round, where they eventually fell against Croatian side, Hajduk Split, 4-2 on aggregate. Despite this, Stergiakis played in two of the four possible games, both of which were second legs against Finnish side Tampereen Ilves and the aforementioned Split, respectively. In addition to his continental exploits, Stergiakis was also between the sticks in Sofia’s narrow 1-0 loss to reigning champions Ludogorets in the curtain-raising Supercup. Despite adding to his experience with the games he played in the league, the Greek did not appear in the FA Cup, as Sofia attempt at retaining their crown failed miserably as they crashed out after their second game, in the Round of 16, to Ludogarets 6-5 on penalties.
Just prior to the start of the 2019-20 season, Stergiakis received another personal honour as he was the only Greek player included in Italian magazine Tuttosport’s top-100 footballers at under-21 level, in a list that included the likes of Juventus’ Matthias De Ligt, Chelsea’s Kai Havertz, Borussia Dortmund’s duo of Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho and Fiorentina’s shot-stopper Alban Lafont. Despite all its COVID-19 disruptions, last season saw Stergiakis’ appearances drop again, as he only made it onto the pitch 15 times, with all of bar one being in league. The exception came in the cup in a 4-0 Round of 32 victory over Zagorets, as Sofia would then go on to lose 2-1, in the Round of 16 to Botev Plovdiv. The Greek however earnt his first career red card after he was dismissed on the 45th minute mark, as he left his team to fight valiantly for a 0-0 draw, against reigning champions, Ludogorets during the seventh game of the league campaign.
On the international stage, Stergiakis has had a gradual rise through the ranks of the Galanolefki. His time with the Euro 2004 winners started with the under-17s side, before he was quickly promoted into the under-19 bracket. The Thessaloniki-born goalie then made his debut for the under-19s side on 2nd September 2017 in a 2-1 friendly loss to Latvia. Stergiakis would then go on to make another three appearances at under-19 level, including two in qualifiers for the 2018 European Championships, against Gibraltar and Czech Republic, with Greece winning both ties, 5-0 and 3-2, respectively. After seeing his play time with Sofia during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons, in comparison to years previous, Stergiakis was soon called up to the under-21 squad for their 2019 European Championship qualifying playoffs against Austria. Despite being on the bench for both legs, Stergiakis did not take the field as the Ethniki were knocked out of the qualifiers. The ‘keeper’s debut for the under-21 side – which was given to him by former Galanolefki goalkeeper, Euro 2004 winner and then-coach Antonios Nikopolidis – soon came on 26th March 2019, where he played the full 90 minutes in a 1-1 friendly draw with Montenegro. Come the June 2019 international break, Stergiakis made it back-to-back appearances as he clinched his first clean sheet at under-21 level in a 3-0 friendly win over Georgia. A treble of appearances was only around the corner for the Greek shot-stopper as four days after his first clean sheet, he got another as San Marino were brushed aside 5-0 in Greece’s first Euro 2021 qualifying match.
As his playing time at club level gradually decreased, so did his minutes for his country as Stergiakis didn’t play in the under-21’s next three games, before making his return to the side in a 2-0 friendly loss to Ukraine. Although Greece were defeated, Stregiakis only played the first 45 minutes of the clash and as the two Ukraine goals both came in the second-half, it meant that Rovers’ new ‘keeper had kept three consecutive clean sheets at international level for the first time. That luck did not last, however, as after being left on the bench for Greece’s next qualifier against Scotland, which they won, Stergiakis was reinstated to the side for their clash against Croatia which ended disastrously for the Greeks, as the Croats walked away 5-0 winners. This thrashing has proved to be Stergiakis’ latest appearance for his national side, as he was not selected in the squad for their next game against San Marino, which they won 1-0.
One positive that Rovers have with their latest acquisition is that, given that Stergiakis’s coming in from Bulgaria it means he does not need to quarantine, which offers him more time to get to know the club and his teammates and will no doubt aid in helping him settle in. As the goalie becomes Rovers’ second ever Greek, behind Giorgos ‘George’ Donis, here’s hoping that the young shot-stopper can continue to develop at Ewood Park under the tutelage of the more experienced Thomas Kaminski and the coaching staff and reach fulfil the potential that placed him on both as a nomination for the ‘Golden Boy’ trophy and on Tuttosport’s prestigious list!
