Nektarios Alexandrou

Nektarios Alexandrou (Greek: Νεκτάριος Αλεξάνδρου; born December 19, 1983 in Nicosia, Cyprus) is a Greek Cypriot former professional footballer. He was a left flank specialist, but he primarily played as the left winger.

Nektarios Alexandrou
Personal information
Full name Nektarios Alexandrou
Date of birth (1983-12-19) 19 December 1983
Place of birth Nicosia, Cyprus
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Left back / Left winger
Youth career
APOEL
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2000–2006 APOEL 103 (24)
2006–2008 Larissa 31 (2)
2008–2019 APOEL 198 (14)
2019 Doxa Katokopia 20 (0)
International career‡
2006– Cyprus 40 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 29 October 2019
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 29 December 2017

Career

APOEL

Alexandrou started his career at APOEL's Academy. He made his debut with APOEL in 2000–01 season. He became a regular member of the team in 2002–03 season and stayed to APOEL until the summer of 2006, playing in total 103 matches and scoring 24 goals. During these years at APOEL, he won 2 championships, 1 Cup and 2 Super cups.

Larissa

On summer of 2006 he moved to Larissa in Greece. Together with Efstathios Aloneftis were part of an important Larissa investment on Cypriot young players. At his first season in Larissa he managed to win the 2006–07 Greek Cup. Alexandrou was considered one of the most important players for Larissa after the team returned to the Super League Greece. He became a starter in Larissa's roster and in the 2007/08 season, scoring important goals in both domestic and European competitions, including a goal against Russian champions FC Zenit Saint Petersburg.

On 13 August 2008, it was announced by Larissa's official website that Alexandrou's contract was terminated. The reason was unknown.[1]

APOEL

Alexandrou re-signed at APOEL on summer of 2008. His return came with the success of winning the 2008–09 Cypriot First Division, with Nektarios being an instrumental part of the team. He also appeared in four official 2009–10 UEFA Champions League group stage matches with APOEL.

The next season, he helped APOEL to win the 2010–11 Cypriot First Division, winning his fourth championship title in his career. He also appeared in six 2011–12 UEFA Champions League matches for APOEL, in the club's surprising run to the quarter-finals of the competition, including the round-of-16 triumph over Olympique Lyonnais where he converted his attempt in the penalty shootout.[2]

The following season he won again the 2012–13 Cypriot First Division, which was his 5th league title in his career with APOEL. During the 2013–14 season, he appeared in five group stage matches of APOEL's UEFA Europa League participation and scored the opening goal in APOEL's 2–1 victory against Bordeaux at GSP Stadium.[3] He also managed to win all the titles in Cyprus that season, the Cypriot League,[4][5] the Cypriot Cup[6][7] and the Cypriot Super Cup.[8][9]

Alexandrou made his only group stage appearance in APOEL's 2014–15 UEFA Champions League campaign on 10 December 2014, playing the full 90 minutes in his team's 4–0 defeat against Ajax at Amsterdam Arena.[10] In the 2014–15 season, he managed to add two more titles to his collection, as APOEL won again both the Cypriot championship and the cup.[11]

After the end of the 2015–16 season, in which he crowned champion for a fourth time in the row, Alexandrou signed a new one-year contract extension with APOEL, becoming also the team's captain.[12]

International career

Alexandrou made his international debut with Cyprus National Team on 1 March 2006, in a friendly match against Armenia at Tsirion Stadium, coming on as a 74th-minute substitute in Cyprus' 2–0 victory.[13]

Personal life

On January 2, 2011, Alexandrou's then girlfriend Marianna Nikolaou, gave birth to their son Ectoras.

On September 11, 2014, Alexandrou married with Cypriot tv presenter and former model Constantina Evripidou in Mykonos. They have two children: a daughter Ariadne (born December 19, 2015) and a son Nicolas (born May 6, 2020). In July 2021, announced their divorce.

Honours
APOEL
Larissa

References
  1. Λύση συνεργασίας με Αλεξάνδρου (in Greek).
  2. Lyon stunned as APOEL fairy tale continues; UEFA.com, 7 March 2012
  3. "Alexandrou rocket helps APOEL achieve lift-off". UEFA. 7 November 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  4. "Sheridan strike hands APOEL Cypriot title". UEFA. 31 May 2014. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
  5. "AEL vs. APOEL 0–1". Soccerway. 31 May 2014. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
  6. ΕΡΜΗΣ ΑΡΑΔΙΠΠΟΥ 0–2 ΑΠΟΕΛ (in Greek). APOEL FC. 21 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
  7. "APOEL vs. Ermis 2–0". Soccerway. 21 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
  8. "APOEL FC 1–0 APOLLON". APOEL FC. 17 August 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  9. "APOEL vs. Apollon 1–0". Soccerway. 17 August 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  10. "Ajax thrash APOEL to finish third in Group F". UEFA. 10 December 2014. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
  11. "APOEL secure league to wrap up Cypriot double". UEFA.com. 24 May 2015. Retrieved 24 May 2015.
  12. "Ανανέωση συνεργασίας με Νεκτάριο Αλεξάνδρου". APOEL FC. 30 May 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
  13. "Cyprus football team defeated Armenia 2:0". eu-football.info. 1 March 2006. Retrieved 4 September 2014.
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