By Sean Mulryan
Konstantinos Tsimikas bears the burden of existing alongside possibly the greatest left-back in Liverpool’s esteemed history. Andrew Robertson has towered above every left-back in world football over the last five years. Kostas is unique, however, as he shares a dressing room with the great Scotsman. As a result, he has cut a forgotten figure for periods of his Anfield tenure. A fantastic fullback in his own right, it is unfortunate that we as Liverpool fans may not appreciate his contribution.
During last Saturday’s disastrous altercation with Manchester City, a number of our once-coveted ‘mentality monsters’ showcased a particular mental fragility. One of the rumoured players facing being dropped is Andrew Robertson, with Konstantinos Tsimikas in line to replace him. Whilst this might inspire a sense of dread or unease in Liverpool’s faithful, it is a fact that Kostas can flourish in such a situation.
Keeping in tradition with Kostas’ heritage, an example from Greek mythology that I find fittingly pertinent to describing Tsimikas’ situation is that of the river Lethe. The recently perished drank from its waters to forget their mortal coils and abandon all knowledge of their previous existence. Whilst we have not perished, I believe we have collectively sipped from the mythological river, unbeknownst. We have forgotten the mortal toils of our backup left-back.
The Past
Hailing from Thessaloniki in Greece, Kostas started his adoration of football from a young age. He began in the lower leagues of Greek football within the academy of Panserraikos Football Club alongside his brother, Stergios. Upon hearing of his transfer to Liverpool in 2020, Kostas’ youth coach at Panserraikos Andreas Pantziaras described how Kostas, “…owes everything to the work and sacrifices (he) made all the way, as only he is to know how many difficulties he coped with in order to reach the top, the top he’s now, eventually, reached.” (Liverpoolfans.gr).
The hardships and sacrifices footballers make are oftentimes overlooked by fans, having to compromise on a vast multitude of life’s pleasures to find success. After developing his footballing armoury at Panserraikos, Kostas’ dedication paid off as he was scouted by the biggest club in Greece, Olympiacos. During his five-year spell, Kostas established himself as one of the most exciting fullbacks in Greece. Joining the academy in 2014 aged just 18, his talent quickly marked him out from the rest, though he still had vast room to improve.
It was not an immediate success for Kostas, he had to work for his opportunity. He had loan spells with Esbjerg in Denmark and Willem II in the Netherlands. The latter proved most formative, seeing him reach a total of 37 appearances, scoring six times and assisting four in the 2017/18 season (Transfermarkt). This proved to be his last loan spell, now deemed ready by the Olympiacos backroom staff to play a role.
Kostas’ former coach at Olympiacos Pedro Martins eulogised over the Greek. He said, “He’s improved a lot in two years. Consistency, in particular…I remember when he came back from the Netherlands, he had some problems, but he improved so much [with] his positional play, the duels.” (GOAL).
The purpose of recanting the journey of Kostas is to epitomise his quality and also his mental fortitude. He has fought every step of the way whilst on the path to Liverpool. He suffered at Olympiacos, having to forge his trade in foreign countries, and countless nights spent adrift from his family in search of football, experience and the prospering of his ability. This is not a fact to be taken lightly or forgotten, it reiterates a mental strength that not all footballers have. This strength has been needed at Liverpool, having to settle for the second chair in Andrew Robertson’s symphony orchestra.
The Present
To match this strength, to make it at Liverpool you also need ability. Dubbed ‘The Greek Scouser’ by fans, or in his own words ‘The Scouser Greek’, Kostas has taken to life in Liverpool and has played instrumental roles in accruing silverware. When gifted the opportunity, he flourishes. Scoring the winning penalty to usurp Chelsea in the FA Cup last season whilst playing as an able deputy to Robertson when needed throughout his tenure.
Although not having the pleasure of scoring a goal thus far from open play across his 56 appearances, he has amassed a total of 12 assists whilst constrained to his limited role (Transfermarkt). Kostas boasts 4.4 shot-creating actions per 90 when he is granted an opportunity. He carries with him a progressive attitude, making 4.25 progressive passes and 3.73 progressive carries per 90. He is an archetypal Klopp fullback, and when compared to Andrew Robertson this season, Tsimikas has a greater goal-creation ability with 0.65 per 90 compared to Robertson’s 0.44 (fbref). While this does feel a tad disingenuous as Robertson’s numbers are greatly diluted through simply having more game time, Kostas showcases ability regardless. When given the opportunity he supplements the creative responsibilities endowed to a Liverpool fullback whilst not compromising the defensive solidity of the team.
The Future?
Kostas remains an influential member of the Liverpool dressing room, from unlikely friendships with Thiago and Mohamed Salah, to being mistaken for Darwin Núñez even by Jurgen Klopp himself (We’ve all mistaken Kostas for Darwin at least once after his recent haircut, let’s be honest). He is an affable member of the squad, a positive influence even when he is not in the starting eleven. With rumours of a sale in the forthcoming summer swirling, I believe it would be wise to retain his services. An outstanding Greek goliath who is approaching the peak of his powers, with the ability to match or even surpass in some areas that of Andrew Robertson. It would be foolish to relinquish his services.
