Giannis Chaniotis (Greek: Γιάννης Χανιώτης; 21 March 1934 – 3 February 2024) was a Greek footballer who played as a forward. He was a prolific scorer and "star player" of AEK Athens during the 1950s.
Club career
Chaniotis started his football career at Atromitos Piraeus and in the summer of 1955 he transferred to AEK Athens. At the age of 21 he had already became a regular within the team. He distinguished himself in the AFCA championships and in the final phase of the Panhellenic Championship. His contribution to winning the Greek Cup in 1956 was crucial, as he was the scorer of both goals in the 2–1 victory over Panathinaikos in the semi-final and he scored the opener in the 2–1 victory over Olympiacos in the final.
In the summer of 1959, following the recommendation of the then coach Tryfon Tzanetis, AEK signed Giannis Marditsis from Egaleo, giving Chaniotis along with Stavros Giafaloglou, Kostas Chatzimichail, Chrysakis and Karalis as exchange. He helped Egaleo to achieve their promotion to Alpha Ethniki. There he took part in 33 championship matches, scoring 16 goals and in the Greek Cup he also scored 15 goals. His record was 7 goals against A.E. Chalandri, on 23 September 1959 in Egaleo's victory with a score of 13–0.
Personal life
In 1961, at the age of 27, Chaniotis immigrated permanently to Australia. The following year, he married Anastasia Vasilatos and together they had three children. He lived for the rest of his life there until 3 February 2024, when he died after suffering from long-term health problems.
Honours
AEK Athens
- Greek Cup: 1955–56
References
External links
- Nikos Dim. Nikolaidis "50 Years of Aigaleo" (1998)
