- Kleanthis Maropoulos
Football player infobox
playername= Kleanthis Maropoulos
fullname = Kleanthis Maropoulos
nickname = "Blond Eagle"
dateofbirth = 1919
cityofbirth =Constantinople
countryofbirth =Turkey
dateofdeath = 1991
cityofdeath =Athens
countryofdeath =Greece
height =
weight =
currentclub =Retired
clubnumber =
position =Striker
youthyears =
youthclubs =Prasina Poulia Ethikos Kalogreza
AEK Athens
years = 1934-1952
clubs = AEK Athens
Total
caps(goals) = 144 (89)
144 (89)
nationalyears =
nationalteam = Greece
nationalcaps(goals) = 10 (9)
pcupdate =June 12 2007
ntupdate =June 18 2006 Kleanthis Maropoulos ( _el. Κλεάνθης Μαρόπουλος) (1919-1991) was a star football player for
AEK Athens FC and Greece during the 1930s and 1940s. Arguably the finest Greek football player of his period, he was affectionately known as the "Blonde Eagle of AEK".Born in 1919 to Greek parents in Tuzla, near
Constantinople , Maropoulos came toGreece with his family at age 3 during the population exchanges after theGreco-Turkish War (1919-1922) . Having settled inKalamata , at age 12 he joined the local football clubPrasina Poulia , the "Green Birds". When his parents moved toKalogreza in theAthens area, he signed forEthnikos Kalogreza . In 1934, he was spotted by AEK who placed him in their youth team. In 1936, he was promoted to the first team. Led by Maropoulos, alongside players likeTryfon Tzanetis andKostas Negrepontis , AEK won their first two Greek Championships in 1939 and 1940 - the first domestic double by a Greek club. Unfortunately, the glory years of AEK and Maropoulos were interrupted byWorld War II , but he did continue his career after the war, playing until the late 1940s. He is credited with scoring 253 goals, 97 of which he attained prior to the war.Maropoulos was capped 10 times by Greece. He subsequently managed the
Greek National Football Team in the early 1960s before retiring from football to manage his sporting goods stores.Honours
AEK
*Greek Championship: 1939, 1940
*Greek Cup: 1939, 1949, 1950
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