Rehhagel makes call-ups ahead of Slovakia friendly

Greece is scheduled to play Slovakia in Bratislava in two weeks time, and Greece coach Otto Rehhagel has already made his first set of squad selections. The preliminary squad list which includes only Greek players playing abroad, features many of the players that starred in Greece’s dismal EURO 2008 run.

One of the call-ups is Sokratis Papastathopoulos, who narrowly missed making the EURO 2008 squad. Since his dismissal from the Greece squad in May, the 21-year old has made the move abroad. His next stop is the Serie A, where Papastathopoulos has signed with Genoa. The 21-year old is expected to play a big role in Greece’s squad over the next several years. His first task will be impressing in this friendly for a spot in Greece’s World Cup Qualifying roster.

Not on the list is Stelios Giannakopoulos, who was released by Bolton Wanderers at the end of the Premier League season. Currently out-of-contract, the experienced midfielder has yet to find a new club and it appears now that he has lost his spot on the national team.

Greece head into the game looking for redemption after a miserable EURO 2008 run. Slovakia never made it to Austria and Switzerland, but the home side should be a stiff test for the EURO 2004 winners. The match will be the last tune-up for both sides before both countries gear up for their World Cup Qualifying campaign.

The complete list of players will be revealed next week. For now, the foreigners that will star in the August 20th friendly include: Ioannis Amanatidis (Eintracht Frankfurt), Angelos Charisteas (FC Nuremberg), Traianos Dellas (Anorthosis Famagusta), Theofanis Gekas (Bayer Leverkusen), Kostas Katsouranis (Benfica), Nikos Lyberopoulos (Eintracht Frankfurt), Sokratis Papastathopoulos (Genoa), Giorgos Samaras (Celtic), Giourkas Seitaridis (Atlético Madrid).