| Intro | Canadian soccer player |
| Is |
Athlete Football player Association football player |
| From | Canada |
| Type | Sports |
| Gender | male |
| Birth | 24 June 1994, Markham, Canada |
| Age: | 26 years |
| Star sign | Cancer |
Nikolaos “Niko” Giantsopoulos (born June 24, 1994) is a Canadian soccer player who plays for Cavalry FC as a goalkeeper.
Club career
Early career
Giantsopoulos played youth soccer with Pickering SC.
Devonport City
In March 2016, Giantsopoulos joined Devonport City in the NPL Tasmania, the second tier of football in Australia.
He started all 21 matches for Devonport in the 2016 season, helping to lead the team to a league championship and was named to the NPL Team of the Year. In the 90th minute of the Round of 16 match in the FFA Cup against Bentleigh Greens with the score at 0-0, he suffered a shoulder injury and was forced to leave the game, which Devonport ultimately lost 1-0, after extra time. As a result of the injury, he also missed the Semi-Finals and Finals of the NPL Tasmania Playoff Series, where Devonport ultimately lost in the Finals, as well as the NPL Finals Series for the champions of each of the regional leagues.
Broadmeadow Magic
In 2017, he joined Broadmeadow Magic in the NPL Northern NSW, a different regional league in the same second-tier of Australian soccer.
Launceston City
Giantsopoulos would return to the Tasmania regional division, signing with NPL Tasmania club Lauceston City for the 2018 season. He would be named vice-captain of the club, and would start all 21 matches in 2018. On August 18, in a match against South Hobart, as a penalty shot was about to be taken, Giantsopoulos ran up and kicked the ball away before it could be taken. He was yellow carded, but his antics proved to be effective, as the ensuing penalty shot was missed. The incident became a viral video around the world. He was named to the NPL Tasmania Team of the Year at the end of the season.
Cavalry FC
Giantsopoulos returned to Canada and signed with Cavalry FC of the Canadian Premier League on January 23, 2019. He served as the backup goalkeeper behind Marco Carducci. He made his debut on May 16 in a Canadian Championship match against Pacific FC. After the season, he re-signed with the club for an additional year.
Statistics
- As of 18 October 2019
| Club | Season | League | Playoffs | Domestic Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Devonport City | 2016 | NPL Tasmania | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 27 | 0 | |
| Broadmeadow Magic | 2017 | NPL Northern NSW | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 26 | 0 | |
| Launceston City | 2018 | NPL Tasmania | 21 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | — | 24 | 0 | ||
| Cavalry FC | 2019 | Canadian Premier League | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | |
| Career totals | 67 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 0 | – | – | 86 | 0 | ||
Honours
Club
Devonport City
- NPL Tasmania Champions: 2016
- NPL Tasmania Playoff Runner-Up: 2016
- Milan Lakoseljac Cup Champions: 2016
Calvary FC
- Canadian Premier League (Regular season):
- Champions: Spring 2019, Fall 2019
- Canadian Premier League Finals
- Runners-up: 2019
- Wildrose Cup: 2019
Individual
- NPL Tasmania Team of the Year: 2016, 2018