Overview
- Olympiacos confirmed late Monday that former defender Paraskevas Antzas had died at 49 after a battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and issued an official statement offering condolences to his family.
- Antzas was a key figure in Olympiacos’ successful era, winning seven Super League titles and three Greek Cups while appearing regularly in UEFA Champions League campaigns.
- He earned 26 caps for Greece and played in qualifying for Euro 2004 but was not selected for the squad that won the tournament.
- His club career began at Pandramaikos, included a move to Xanthi and a transfer to Olympiacos in 1998, a brief retirement in 2003 followed by a spell at hometown side Doxa Drama, a return to Olympiacos in 2007, and a final retirement in 2009.
- Fans and former teammates have posted tributes on social media and coverage of his death has renewed attention to ALS, the most common form of motor neurone disease that progressively attacks the brain and spinal cord motor neurons.