by Nick Lough
Next season will be Middlesbrough goalkeeper Dimi Konstantopoulos' 20th year in professional football, but the 37-year-old is unfazed by his late success in the game as he plots promotion to the Premier League.
He made his professional debut back in 1996, but the former Coventry and Hartlepool shot-stopper came full circle when he returned to his homeland of Greece in 2009 and then made his way back to the UK three years later after signing for Middlesbrough.
With Boro chasing promotion to the top-flight after narrowly missing out last season via the play-offs, the veteran is proud of his lengthy career and as hungry for success as he was in his younger days.
“It's a great deal to be able to reach 20 years as a professional player,” said Konstantopoulos.
“I was lucky enough not to have many long-term injuries and, if you look after yourself, especially in my position, it helps.
“The good thing is that, even though I'm 37 now, I feel in great condition and, as long as I feel this way, I will continue.
“Plans can change at any point whether you are 20 or you're 40. If you try to improve and do everything to get better, your big moment will come.”
Drafted in by Tony Mowbray in 2013 as cover for Shay Given and Jason Steele, he soon ousted out the pair when Aitor Karanka took over as manager.
Konstantopoulos owes a lot to the faith of the Spaniard and is glad to be paying it back with some top performances.
“I was never going there to think I would be No.3 or No.4 and just collect my wages,” he said. “Things went for me when the manager changed.
“When he came here, the first thing he said to everyone was that he didn't care about contracts or names, he would see everyone and decide who would play if they trained well and performed well.
“Credit to him. He kept his word and one of the cases was myself. I try to repay him in every game.”
Returning to his native Greece, firstly with Kerkyra (known as Corfu) and latterly AEK Athens, Konstantopoulos says he enjoyed competing at a high level in different competitions, but the nation's poor financial situation had a great impact on his time there.
He said: “I spent three years in Greece. Football-wise it wasn't bad because I got my caps in the national team and I got to play in the Europa League with AEK Athens.”
Football in Greece, he, says, is in the same predicament as the economy, so everyday life is difficult, even for top-flight footballers.
“It was hard to adjust,” he admitted, “so I was looking for an opportunity to come back to England and I got that with Middlesbrough.”
After play-off final heartbreak at Wembley, where Boro crashed to a 2-0 defeat to Norwich in May, Konstantopoulos believes the new-look Middlesbrough team has what it takes to go one step further and play in what he considers to be the best league in the world.
“I think we have strengthened from last year as we've got more quality and more experience,” he said.
“Those who were here last season have learned a lot from it, and I think in some situations we face in games we have the players to handle it better.
“It would be fantastic for me personally. It's the best but the hardest league in the world.
“If you can test yourself against the best, then you can say you've done it so it would be a massive thing for everyone involved in the club.
“This is a Premier League club that has been in the Championship for the last few years, and we'll give it our best shot to make it this year.”
