He then went abroad and played in his parent's country of Greece for Kalamata.
The Papadopoulos era of Kalamata F.C. was notable for the signing of many international players from the African nation of Ghana, such as Samuel Johnson, Afo Dodoo, Ebenezer Hagan, Peter Ofori-Quaye and Derek Boateng.
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Interestingly enough, one of those players, Hilton Assis (1999-2000), turned out to be the first cousin of Brazil and Barcelona FC super star Ronaldinho.
The academies of Kalamata were those who first opened their doors to welcome the young coach, who after several interviews and resumes, got the approval of the former president of Kalamata Stavros Papadopoulos, who was quite satisfied with the curriculum of the young coach, who had already made his own passage as coach in small groups and academies in Levski Sofia as part of his studies.