Kostas Tsimikas, the Greek international full back for Liverpool football club, secured an historic victory on Saturday for his team after kicking the winning penalty shot against Chelsea at Wembley Stadium.
'Liverpool defender Kostas Tsimikas wrote himself into Anfield and FA Cup folklore after he kept his nerve from the spot to keep alive Jurgen Klopp’s impossible dream.
'The Greek international finally separated these two teams by firing home the winning penalty in the shoot-out after 120 minutes’ of enthralling entertainment as the Reds’ quadruple hung in the balance. Nothing could prise this same duo apart in the Carabao Cup three months ago and it was a similar story at Wembley as fortunes ebbed and flowed.' wrote Neil Moxley in the Daily Mail.
25-year-old Tsimikas has gained hero status since the Reds hadn't won the FA Cup since 2006! Prior to that they had been FA Cup winners in 1965, 1974, 1986, 1989, 1992, and 2001.
Kostas Tsimikas already enjoys huge popularity with Liverpool fans which has already gotten bigger after his winning penalty shot which saw him written into the club's history books.
Affectionally called the 'Greek Scouser' by fans, when asked about his nickname, Tsimikas hilariously responded:
"I'm not the Greek Scouser, I am a Scouser who is Greek!"
RESOURCE | ABOUT KOSTAS TSIMIKAS
Konstantinos Tsimikas is a Greek professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Premier League club Liverpool and the Greece national team.
Tsimikas previously played for Olympiacos, and also had loan spells with Esbjerg and Willem II.
Tsimikas was born in Thessaloniki, and hails from the village of Lefkonas, Serres. He started his career from his village's local team and he transferred to AS Neapoli Thessaloniki when he was 14 years old. In 2013, he moved to Panserraikos and he scored 5 goals during 2013–14 season in Gamma Ethniki.
Olympiacos
Tsimikas made his Olympiacos debut in the Super League in a match against AEL Kalloni on 19 December 2015.
On 11 August 2020, Tsimikas signed for Liverpool on a deal for reported fee of £11.75 million. He became just the second Greek footballer to become a Liverpool player after Sotiris Kyrgiakos who joined the club from AEK Athens in 2009. He made his debut for Liverpool in the EFL Cup on 24 September 2020, against Lincoln City in a 7–2 win.[18] He made his Premier League debut as a substitute for Andrew Robertson against Manchester City in a 4–1 loss.
On 14 August 2021, he made his first league start in the 3–0 away win against Norwich City on the opening weekend of the season.[19] He followed this up with a man-of-the-match performance on 21 August, providing the assist for Diogo Jota's goal in a 2–0 win over Burnley.
On 13 April 2022, at the quarter-finals of the 2021–22 UEFA Champions League against Benfica, Tsimikas provided two assists in a 3–3 draw, helping Liverpool to secure their place in the semi-finals. He was named Player of the Match.
On 14 May 2022, at the FA Cup final against Chelsea, Tsimikas scored the deciding penalty in a penalty shoot-out after a 0–0 draw at Wembley, winning the game 6–5 on pens for Liverpool.
International career
Tsimikas received his first call-up to the Greece senior team for 2018–19 UEFA Nations League matches against Hungary and Finland in October. He made his international debut in the starting eleven for the match at home to Hungary on 12 October, and crossed for Kostas Mitroglou to score the only goal of the game.
