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Konstantinos " Kostas" Manolas (; ; born 14 June 1991) is a Greek footballer who plays for Kyklades FCA First Division club Pannaxiakos. A defender throughout his career, Manolas has been playing as a striker for Pannaxiakos since 2024.
On 16 June 2009, Manolas signed a three-year deal with AEK. After signing, Manolas said, "I am very happy signing for the team I support, hopefully I can be a legend at the club like my uncle and end my career at AEK." He made his debut against AO Kavala and was named man of the match. After the game, he stated, "It's a dream to play for the club I love." Manolas was also rewarded with man of the match honours the following week against PAOK FC. In his first seven matches, Manolas was named man of the match in five of them.
Manolas scored his first professional goal against archrivals Olympiacos on 19 May 2010. Although he was playing with a broken jugal bone since the first minute of the match after a dangerous nudge by Kostas Mitroglou, he scored in the sixth minute, though he later left the match in the 15th minute. He refused to be taken to the hospital before the match was over, despite being urged by his uncle Stelios Manolas. The next day, he underwent a successful three-hour surgery, recovered and quickly returned to training sessions.
Manolas developed massively while playing alongside AEK icon and UEFA Euro 2004 winner Traianos Dellas, stating to the press, "It is an honour to play alongside such a great player like Dellas, I have developed and become a better player. His experience has helped me become confident on the ball and the decisions I make in the game. I have learned a lot from him and he is basically like a teacher to me who I look up to."
On 30 April 2011, Manolas won the first trophy of his career, the Greek Cup. He played a large role in winning the trophy and played solid throughout the match against Atromitos, where at one point he cleared an opposition shot off his line. Manolas also received man of the match honours due to his outstanding display. After the 0–3 victory, Manolas stated, "It is a dream for me to win a trophy with my childhood club AEK, and I hope there's many more to come in the future." He finished the 2010–11 season playing 36 matches, scoring three goals.
Manolas started the season positively, playing his first competitive match of the 2011–12 season against Georgian side Dinamo Tbilisi in a 2011–12 UEFA Europa League qualifier, helping AEK to 1–0 victory. He was given heavy praise from Manolo Jiménez. Manolas scored his first goal of the season in a 0–1 away victory over Panionios. He dedicated the goal to Jiménez, who had been taking criticism in recent weeks for his team's poor performances. Manolas scored against Panionios Manolas also scored the first goal for AEK Athens in a 1–3 away win against Austrian club Sturm Graz in the Europa League. During the January transfer period, the English Premier League's Everton showed sincere interest in the young centre back, with the team's then-manager David Moyes stating, "Manolas has huge talent and is a player for the future." On 30 January 2012, it was said that AEK and Everton had agreed on terms to sell Manolas to Everton. Manolas, however, declined the offer, as he felt he would be leaving his club in a bad situation as the club would have only had three centre backs in the squad: Traianos Dellas and two youth players Mavroudis Bougaidis and Elfar Freyr Helgason after the departure of loanee Cala, who was recalled back to his club Sevilla FC. AEK Chairman Stavros Adamidis stated, "It was Manolas who declined the offer, not AEK." He left AEK Athens having 85 appearances (6 goals) in all competitions.
Manolas made his Olympiacos debut against PAS Giannina on 15 September in a 1–2 away win, then scored his first goal for his new side against Skoda Xanthi in a 4–0 home win. Manolas made 24 appearances for Olympiacos in the league that season, helping them win the Superleague. On 11 May 2013, he played in the Greek Cup Final against Asteras Tripoli, winning 3–1 to clinch a league and cup double for the season.
Manolas scored his first goal for Olympiacos in the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League in a 1–0 home win against Benfica, building the foundations for the next round. He scored his second goal in the Champions League in a 2–1 away loss against Paris Saint-Germain, though nonetheless the squad secured a spot in the round of 16—the first time the club had reached the stage since 2009–10—in matchup against Manchester United. With United failing to display their usual dominant domestic form that term, Manolas thought the Greek champions had what it takes to make the Champions League quarter-finals for only the second time: "I believe we will give a good performance. I hope Manchester United will not get better than they are now, so we can defeat them." Despite winning the first leg 2–0 at home, Olympiacos fell as Manchester United's Robin van Persie hit a hat-trick in the return leg in Manchester to progress 3–2 on aggregate.
On 22 March 2014, Manolas extended his contract with Olympiacos for another year, keeping him at the club until the summer of 2017. He left Olympiacos having 73 appearances (6 goals, 2 assists) in all competitions.
Manolas' impressive first year with his club garnered interest from many other European sides, including Premier League giants Arsenal, though the player's agent, Mino Raiola, said that Manolas was not interested in discussing the rumours: "Kostas is a Roma player, and anyone who wants him will have to ask the club. All I can say is the lad has a contract until 2019. Roma paid a lot for him, and that means they have a lot of expectations for him."
Manolas enjoyed an excellent first season in Serie A, cementing his place at the heart of manager Rudi Garcia's defence as his side finished second in the league table. In the ensuing close season, Arsenal offered Roma £15 million for the player, whom they originally tried to sign last summer before being beaten by Roma. Arsenal ‘offered fresh hope of pushing through £15million Kostas Manolas transfer’ Retrieved 10 April 2015 On 19 June 2015, at the end of the season, Manolas, via a Roma fan poll, was named the club's "best purchase of the season" after capturing 56% of the vote, in front of the likes of Seydou Keita (18%) and Juan Iturbe (8%).
On 26 September, Manolas scored his first goal in the 2015–16 Serie A as Roma comfortably defeated newly promoted side Carpi 5–1. He opened the scoring after netting Lucas Digne's clever assist with his right boot besides the challenge in the box from Carpi's Gabriel Silva. Roma 5 – 1 Carpi Retrieved 26 September 2015
On 5 December, in a dramatic 1–1 away draw against Torino in domestic league action, Manolas brought down Andrea Belotti inside the area, whereupon Maxi López coolly converted the subsequent 94th-minute penalty kick. Despite replays suggesting the Greek defender may well have gotten the ball in the challenge, the referee nonetheless awarded the penalty. Torino 1 – 1 Roma Retrieved 5 December 2015 Torino 1 – 1 Roma Retrieved 5 December 2015 On 11 December, towards the end of a Champions League match against Belarusians BATE Borisov, Manolas engaged in a quarrel with teammate Miralem Pjanić for mishandling a ball possession. As reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport, the two players continued the fighting into the team's locker room. Nervosismo tra Pjanic e Manolas al termine di Roma-BATE Retrieved 11 December 2015 Scintille in casa Roma: lite tra Manolas e Pjanic nel dopo BATE Retrieved 11 December 2015 On 17 February 2016, in a 1st leg UEFA Champions League game for the last 16, he was the indisputable leader of the defence, despite the 2–0 home loss from the Spanish giants Real Madrid. "Τοίχος" ο Μανωλάς, κορυφαίος της Ρόμα Retrieved 18 February 2016 Manolas closed down Karim Benzema quite well throughout the game. Most of the low crosses were taken care of well by him but he could do nothing about the two goals. AS Roma 0–2 Real Madrid: Player Ratings Retrieved 18 February 2016 On 20 April 2016, in a match for Serie A, Manolas scored his second goal in the season, giving an assist in a glorious home win against Torino F.C. Τεράστια ανατροπή με Τότι η Ρόμα Retrieved 20 April 2016
In September 2016, A.S. Roma are obliged to pay the sum of €6.5 million to Olympiakos for the international defender. Roma did not want to sell the Greek defender this summer as Olympiakos had a 50% next percentage sale until this August. Roma also rejected a bid from Arsenal in the region of €39 million for Manolas and therefore the player stayed put. Now Olympiakos will receive from Roma the fee of €6,5 million and Roma will activate the clause obtaining the 100% of the player. «Ζεστό» χρήμα σε Ολυμπιακό από Ρόμα για Μανωλά Retrieved 3 September 2016 Manolas is considered the best marker of 'calcio' and Barcelona have been following him for a while. The Greek international has always been on a list of defenders that Barcelona have been interested in. With Thomas Vermaelen's loan to Roma they received an option to buy on Manolas at the summer of 2017. On 2 October 2016, he scored the second goal sealing a 2–1 home win against rivals Inter Milan, as well as made the Inter captain Mauro Icardi disappear. Roma-Inter 2–1: gol di Dzeko, Banega e Manolas Retrieved 2 October 2016 On 18 October 2016, Manolas rejected A.S. Roma's proposal on the extension of his contract, which expires in 2019, despite the fact that the management was ready to raise the salary of the Greek centre back from €1.8 million to €2.5 million per year. According to the newspapers sources, the 25-year-old international player saw that almost 12 players had a higher salary than his and now expects an improved offer. Manolas rejects Roma renewal? Retrieved 18 October 2016
On 23 October 2016, Manolas reached 100 appearances with the jersey of Roma, in a 4–1 home win Serie A game against Palermo. On 31 October, he broke his nose in AS Roma's 0–0 away draw against Empoli, in a game where the Greek defender simply covered every possible hole, thus missing Europa League clash against FK Austria Wien and Serie A match with Bologna at the Olimpico, the Giallorossi said. On 4 December 2016, in one of the most spectacular Roman derbies in history, Manolas showed the usual ability both in anticipating and blocking his opponents, giving Balde Diao Keita and Ciro Immobile a very difficult afternoon. On 13 December 2016, Roma's center-back trio had an amazing performance, especially Manolas and Federico Fazio who combined 15 clearances, 11 interceptions and won 12 duels. Manolas' impact surpassed just defensive duties as he assisted for Radja Nainggolan's 1–0 winner against A.C. Milan. On 18 December 2016, Manolas according to doctors' report, will be out for around two weeks after picking up another injury in Roma's 1–0 defeat to Juventus. Manolas was forced off in the latter stages at Juventus Stadium, and he will now miss Roma's match against Chievo, the defender having already been struck down with a broken nose and muscle strain this season. On 8 January 2017, he returned to the squad playing as a late substitute in a 1–0 away win against Genoa. On 25 May 2017, a week before the end of the season, Manolas and Diego Perotti came a step away from putting their hands on them during training. To avoid the worst, only the provisional intervention of teammates, along with Luciano Spalletti's decision to send them to the dressing room without even finishing the training, helped to lower the tension.
On 2 December 2017, the Greek international renewed his contract with the Giallorossi, until 2022, with a release clause set at €35 million. On 15 October 2017, the Greek defender was substituted during the Serie A match against Napoli that took place at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. The Greek defender was out for almost a month due to a Grade I strain of his left adductor longus (thigh) muscle. On 31 October 2017, he returned to the squad in a convincing 3–0 Champions League home game against English champions Chelsea F.C. On 5 November 2017, he scored his first goal in 2017-18 season from an Edin Džeko assist in a 4–2 away win against ACF Fiorentina.
On 9 March 2018, he scored the first goal in a 3–0 win with a header against Torino F.C. after an assist by Alessandro Florenzi with a cross following a corner. After his goal, Manolas dropped to his knees and pointed to the sky in tribute to Davide Astori, the Fiorentina captain who died on 4 March. On 4 April 2018, in a frustrating 4–1 away loss for 2017–18 Champions League quarter finals 1st leg to FC Barcelona, Manolas scored Roma's second own-goal after a clearance that in turn hit the right post, Samuel Umtiti and the Greek defender. However, Manolas more than compensated for the 1st leg performance as he brilliantly headed the final goal in the Giallorossi's 3–0 dominant victory over the Blaugrana in the return leg, sending Roma to the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since 1984. On 21 April 2018, Manolas captained his first match with the club against SPAL during a 3–0 away win in Serie A, after receiving the armband from his teammate Radja Nainggolan.
Manolas was one of Roma's most consistent players over the course of the campaign, proving to be a reliable figure in the Italians' defence.
On 6 March 2019, Manolas made his 200th appearance in all competitions with Roma in the second leg of the club's round of 16 UEFA Champions League tie against FC Porto; Manolas played the full 120 minutes as Roma lost 3–1 at home to exit the Champions League. Reports from the Italian media later confirmed that the 27-year-old had strained a muscle, and would miss around three weeks of action, meaning that he would not be expected to participate in his nation's UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying matches against Liechtenstein and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
On 24 August 2019, he made his debut with the club, starting in the 4–3 away win against ACF Fiorentina. A week later he scored his first goal for the club in a thrilling 4–3 away loss against Juventus, netting a goal with a header after a beautiful free-kick from Mário Rui. On 28 September, Manolas scored his second goal of the season with a header after Nikola Maksimović's corner, helping his club seal a 2–1 home win game against Brescia Calcio.
On 31 December, Manolas was included in the Roma Team of the Decade.
On 29 February 2020, Manolas connected with Lorenzo Insigne's free-kick from the right wing, thumping a header into the net to give Napoli the lead in a 2–1 home win game against Torino.
On 16 May, Manolas was the first Napoli player to get injured since training resumed after the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy. His club did not mention how long he would be out for, but 'Corriere dello Sport' reported that he would miss six weeks.
On 12 January 2021, Napoli confirmed that Manolas had suffered a first-degree muscle injury. The Partenopei defender was replaced by Nikola Maksimovic after 15 minutes of the 2–1 win against Udinese Calcio.
On 8 February 2021, Napoli confirmed that Manolas would be out for three weeks, as he suffered a second-degree sprain and damaged the ligament in the right ankle. The Greek defender was substituted at the Marassi and carried out tests at the Pineta Grande clinic. He made his return to the squad as a late substitute against Sassuolo on 3 March, but conceded a late penalty which Sassuolo converted to end the match in a 3–3 draw.
On 21 October 2021, Manolas suffered an injury during Napoli's Europa League clash against Legia Warsaw. He was forced off the pitch in the 72nd minute with a suspected muscle injury. In December 2021, having lost his place in the starting lineup to Amir Rrahmani, Manolas again expressed his desire to leave the club. On 10 December, he made his first appearance for almost two months as a late substitute in a 3–2 home win game against Leicester City in the Europa League.
On 9 June 2017, Manolas and his Roma teammate Edin Dzeko came to blows during an ugly brawl in World Cup qualifier game between Bosnia-Herzegovina and Greece. The game ended 0–0 and descended into chaos after the final whistle, when numerous players and members of staff clashed.
On 12 September 2018, Manolas netted his first goal with Greece, leaping over his marker to head a free kick through the goalkeeper's hands in a 2–1 away loss against Hungary for the Nations League.
He is a fluent speaker of Greek, Italian, and English.
| + Appearances and goals by club, season and competition !rowspan="2" | Club !rowspan="2" | Season !colspan="3" | League !colspan="2" | National cup !colspan="2" | League cup !colspan="2" | Continental !colspan="2" | Other !colspan="2" | Total |
| Thrasyvoulos | 2008–09 | Super League Greece | 0 | |||||
| AEK Athens | 2009–10 | Super League Greece | 1 | |||||
| 2010–11 | 3 | |||||||
| 2011–12 | 2 | |||||||
| Olympiacos | 2012–13 | Super League Greece | 1 | |||||
| 2013–14 | 5 | |||||||
| AS Roma | 2014–15 | Serie A | 0 | |||||
| 2015–16 | 2 | |||||||
| 2016–17 | 0 | |||||||
| 2017–18 | 4 | |||||||
| 2018–19 | 2 | |||||||
| SSC Napoli | 2019–20 | Serie A | 4 | |||||
| 2020–21 | 0 | |||||||
| 2021–22 | 0 | |||||||
| Olympiacos | 2021–22 | Super League Greece | 0 | |||||
| 2022–23 | 0 | |||||||
| Sharjah FC | 2022–23 | UAE Pro League | 0 | |||||
| 2023–24 | 0 | |||||||
| Salernitana | 2023–24 | Serie A | 0 | |||||
| Pannaxiakos | 2024–25 | Cyclades FCA First Division | 15 | |||||
| + Appearances and goals by national team and year | |
| Greece | 0 |
| 0 | |
| 0 | |
| 0 | |
| 0 | |
| 1 | |
| 0 | |
| + List of international goals scored by Kostas Manolas ! No. !! Date !! Venue !! Opponent !! Score !! Result !! Competition |
| 2018–19 UEFA Nations League C |
Olympiacos
Napoli
Sharjah
Individual
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