| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Vasileios Andreas Zikos | ||
| Date of birth | 1 June 1974 | ||
| Place of birth | Athens, Greece | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Playing position | Defensive Midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1993–1998 | Skoda Xanthi | 114 | (4) |
| 1998–2002 | AEK Athens | 105 | (6) |
| 2002–2006 | Monaco | 103 | (2) |
| 2006–2008 | AEK Athens | 50 | (0) |
| Total | 354 | (12) | |
| National team | |||
| Greece U-21 | 7 | (0) | |
| 1999-2001 | Greece | 18 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Andreas Vassilis "Akis" Zikos (born 1 June 1974 in Athens) is a retired Greek international football player who played as a defensive midfielder. He was a strong and industrious player, known for his tackling and positioning skills.
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He started his professional career in 1993 with Skoda Xanthi for whom he spent 4 seasons in the Greek Super League.[1]
Between 1998 and 2002 he was an integral part of AEK Athens, winning the Greek Cup in two occasions, 2000 and 2002.
In the summer of 2002 he was signed by Monaco where he played for four seasons in Ligue 1.[2] He also proved his talent with the club on the European stage. In 2003 he won the French League Cup and in 2004 AS Monaco (always under Didier Deschamps) made it to the UEFA Champions League Final where they lost to José Mourinho's FC Porto in Arena Auf Schalke, Gelsenkirchen. Despite their heavy loss (3-0 for FC Porto), Akis Zikos was recognized one of the best players on the pitch that day. His appearance in the final made Zikos the first Greek to play in a UEFA Champions League final.
In 2006, after 4 full successful years in France, Akis Zikos decided to return to his home country to play for his favorite team, AEK Athens. Zikos, in an injury plagued year for AEK Athens, helped the team to finish in first place only to be lost unfairly by Olympiakos under legislation 2006-07 season and achieve a Champions League 3rd qualification round berth. He retired from football on 20 April 2008 on the final game of the regular season.
He won 18 caps for Greece, but fell out of favor when coach Otto Rehhagel took over the team.