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Achieving the Impossible - the Remarkable Story of Greece's EURO 2004 Victory Paperback – June 12, 2020

by George Tsitsonis (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 33 ratings
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Only the most optimistic of supporters of the Ethniki, as Greece's national football team is commonly known, would have dreamt of what occurred in Portugal at the 2004 European football championships. They came under the guidance of Otto Rehhagel, a disciplinarian German coach who was also an astute tactician, and went on to - literally - achieve the impossible by winning! It was one of the greatest shocks in the history of international football. This book is the story of how that happened. It is the first time the story has been told in long form in the English language and includes remarkable first-hand accounts from players, coaches and officials from the Ethniki. American journalist George Tsitsonis writes not only of how the impossible was achieved, but the pride and joy that such a 'miracle' brought to Greek people and the Greek diaspora around the world.
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  1. Print length
    242 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Fair Play Publishing
  4. Publication date
    June 12, 2020
  5. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.66 x 8.5 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1925914089
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1925914085
  8. See all details
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About the Author

George Tsitsonis is a Greek-American football writer who has had a life-long love of the beautiful game. This has led to his participation in the sport in a variety of ways, from amateur player to coach to writer. The son of Greek immigrants, George was exposed to the game as a young boy through kickabouts with his father. That, coupled with growing up alongside football-mad friends and reading magazines such as Soccer America and World Soccer, fueled an intense passion for the sport. After graduating from Keene State College, George became a freelancer in 2002. Since then he has had his work included in a number of publications including FourFourTwo, ESPN Soccernet, FIFA World, FIFA Magazine, Soccer International, Inside Soccer Magazine, 90 Minutes Magazine, Football Club Magazine, Greeksoccer.com, SoccerAge, and Goal.com. He has been a Senior Staff Writer for AGONAsport.com, the world's biggest English-language website devoted to Greek sport, since 2016. Tsitsonis has covered stories around the football world, specifically places and teams far away from the limelight. He has always specialised in covering Greek football and has written extensively on the Greek game. He has offered his views and opinions on Greek leagues, the national team, and clubs to various outlets from England to Colombia, from the United Arab Emirates to the Czech Republic. The lack of English-language coverage of Greece's unbelievable EURO 2004 success prompted him to write 'Achieving The Impossible', a book detailing one of the greatest shocks in the history of international football. George resides in Walpole, New Hampshire, USA with his wife and two children. He continues to work at his family's restaurant business while finding joy in writing and coaching football as well as losing to his kids in the backyard.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Fair Play Publishing (June 12, 2020)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 242 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1925914089
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1925914085
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.9 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.66 x 8.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 33 ratings

About the author

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George Tsitsonis

George Tsitsonis

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George Tsitsonis is a Greek-American writer who has been a freelance soccer/football journalist since 2002. Tsitsonis has written for a number of different outlets including FourFourTwo, various FIFA publications, and most recently AGONAsport.com. His focus has traditionally been on covering Greek soccer and smaller nations away from the bright lights.

In 2017, Tsitsonis began researching Greece's EURO 2004 win which culminated in his first book, 'Achieving The Impossible - The Remarkable Story of Greece's EURO 2004 Victory.' 'Achieving The Impossible' was released by Fair Play Publishing in June 2020.

While maintaining a great interest in writing about 'the beautiful game', Tsitsonis is currently working on a fictional story based on the Greek-American experience. This first fictional work will focus on love, family, and cultural identity from the Greek-American and Greek perspectives. This project is slated for completion in 2022.

George lives in Walpole, NH, USA with his wife Sheila and their two children. For more updates, please visit his author page or website, www.georgetsitsonis.com.

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
33 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

David Freydkin
5.0 out of 5 stars The Incredible Story of King Otto and the Ethniki
Reviewed in the United States on April 30, 2023
Verified Purchase
Unlike the World Cup, the European Championships have a history of underdogs winning the tournament. Czechoslovakia in 1976, Denmark in 1992 and, who can forget, Greece in 2004. Many countries have that one historical glorious sports achievement that stands out. For the USA, it is beating the Soviets in Lake Placid, for Germany it was beating the seemingly undefeatable Hungarians in the 1954 World Cup final, and for Greece, it must be winning Euro 2004.

Prior to 2004, the Greek national soccer team, nicknamed the Ethniki, were notorious underachievers and got very little to no respect in their own country. Many professional Greek soccer players considered competing for the national team a waste of time rather than an honor. In addition, heated rivalries between the different major Greek club teams such as Olympiakos, Panathinaikos, and AEK created hostilities between the players. Prior to that tournament, Greece's most significant achievements were qualifying for Euro 1980 and the 1994 World Cup, the latter of which ended in disaster. In addition, although the Greek team did have some talented players, none were truly world class.

In my opinion, the key to Greece's success was the German coach Otto Rehagel, one of the greatest coaches in soccer history, having had an amazing career in the Bundesliga prior to joining the Greek soccer federation. He won three Bundesliga championships, three German Cups, and one UEFA cup. It was he who united and motivated the Greek players and instilled tactical discipline within the side.

Playing a solid and impressive game in Euro 2004, Greece ended up defeating much more fancied sides including France, Czech Republic, and Portugal. They beat a Portuguese side featuring the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Figo, and Rui Costa twice. Many pundits disliked the extremely defensive style played by the Ethniki, which created very few chances, but, hey, you work with what you have and do you what you have to do to win.
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jc
5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful
Reviewed in the United States on September 4, 2021
Verified Purchase
I just finished this on my honeymoon in Mani, Greece. Being here only made this account more special for me and took me back to my memories as a teen Greek American of the tournament. Blending these two worlds together brought the story to life even more. I'm glad I waited for this moment to savor this!

It's hard to get good Greek soccer content abroad, particularly in English. The fact that George was able to incorporate so many dopamine-inducing nuggets of detail, insight, and enriching goodness filled in contextual gaps that I would have had only if I were a Greek living in Greece during the tournament.

This book also makes me wonder about how many other untold stories regarding Greek soccer could be investigated in English...

Thanks for such detailed and rigorous research, and for a genuinely easy and fun read. Looking forward to whatever you write next.
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The Strand Magazine
5.0 out of 5 stars A must-read for any sports fan
Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2020
We have had books written about the miracle on ice and any number of inspiring sports stories, but to my knowledge nobody has ever written about Greece's miraculous run to the Euro 2004 title. This was a team that was an 80-1 outsider and yet they didn't flatter, they didn't show flashes of greatness only to come up empty but they won the whole thing. They beat the hosts twice which featured a young Ronald and an older but still powerful Luis Figo. And they beat the holders which boasted players such as Henry and Zidane. To watch the games was one thing to read this book is another, there are many things that happened behind the scenes that influenced what happened on the field and the author writes like an insider. Despite knowing that Greece would win it all, the book was riveting an when reading it at times I was asking myself if the ending would somehow be different. And that is the talent of an author who can write with the skill of an insider, where you heard from the characters involved and you felt you were in the arena witnessing history. Of particular note was the profile of Greece's inspiring coach Otto Rehhagel, who guided a team of known for underachieving and choking when it mattered to in my humble opinion the upset of the century. Read this book and don't be surprised if you miss meetings, forget about dinner, or like I did stay up into the night.
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Top reviews from other countries

Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent deep dive into Greece's improabable Euro 2004 victory
Reviewed in Canada on September 25, 2020
Verified Purchase
If you are looking to relive the Greek national team's journey to winning Euro 2004 this is the book you need. The quality of the writing as well as the in-depth analysis is very high. The author does a nice job of weaving each player's story into the broader narrative of the national team's history of low expectations, the hiring of Otto Rehhagle and the transformation of the squad into contenders. Each match of the tournament is given in depth treatment.
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