It’s just after the Heracles cement works. That’s the landmark, along with the fertilizer plant’s water tower. Park there, and Drapetsona’s stadium is just a few minutes’ walk away. Walking along Lambraki Street, you start to soak up the atmosphere of this district and get a feel for its history—because Drapetsona arose out of a violent uprooting, and generations of local residents’ dreams of a fairer life were born and died within this neighborhood’s boundaries.
There are Olympiacos slogans on the walls, the Club’s red and white scarves and flags are on display in shops and homes. Here, everything has an identity. The stadium’s marble entrance presents all those that enter with a legend. Because Giannis Vazos lent his name to the stadium in this neighborhood which he called home. Just a stone’s throw from his house, it serves as a constant reminder of his achievements. And because generations have been raised on those feats, and because they are documented in a smattering of press clippings, they remain very much alive among Olympiacos fans almost a century on.
Drapetsona is where the young Vazos washed up, aged 8, when his family was forced to leave Smyrna after the Asia Minor Catastrophe. This is where word-of-mouth accounts began about a talented kid from Smyrna who looked like he could take Yannis Andrianopoulos’ place in the Olympiacos attack, and where tales were told of his almost mythic feats on the pitch over the 18 years (1931-1949) he wore the Olympiacos jersey.
He wasn’t just a great striker, he was the flame that set Olympiacos’ passion for victory alight; his goals set the club on the historic path it followed.
It’s been said in print that he scored 539 goals in official and friendly matches over his career, 450 of them as a member of the Piraeus team. Vazos himself spoke of 700 goals all told, but that tally hasn’t been confirmed. According to the data brought together by Stathis Arvanitis in his book «The History of Olympiacos», over 156 official games with the Red and Whites, Vazos scored 179 goals, a performance that makes him the third top scorer in the history of the club, behind Giorgos Sideris and Nikos Anastopoulos. He actually topped those rankings for decades, before the others caught up.
How he found his way to Olympiacos
Giannis Vazos, one of the most iconic figures in Olympiacos history, left an indelible mark on Greek football. His career, passion, talent and dedication established him as one of the Club’s top scorers and a fan favorite.
He was born in Smyrna in the autumn of 1914, back at a time when the city was full of life and culture. He loved football from a young age, playing with his friends in the streets and empty lots. The cosmopolitan atmosphere and rich sporting tradition of the ancient city on the coast of Asia Minor would leave its mark on Vazos and his attitude to sport: as a player he never gave up, played till he dropped, and lived for victory. An enormous talent, his name became synonymous with goal-scoring. His experience of playing on the streets of Smyrna, combined with his passion for the sport, helped him develop his skills and become one of the top footballers of his era.
His appearances with Apollon Drapetsona and AEK Piraeus attracted the interest of Olympiacos, and the 17-year-old Vazos joined the team in the spring of 1931. Because of document issues, he started out playing friendlies. Still, he made an enormous impression from the start and didn’t have to wait long for his first official match with the Club, in the 1931-1932 season.
Olympiacos’ renowned frontline in the inter-war period: Christoforos Raggos, Giannis Vazos and Theologis Symeonidis.
A fan favorite
His presence was a decisive element in Olympiacos’ dominance of Greek football throughout the 1930s. Vazos was the undisputed leader of the team and much loved in the stands. He was probably the first player the Olympiacos fans created a special chant for. After a landmark game against Panathinaikos in which he single-handedly leveled the score when the Red and Whites were 4-0 down, the Piraeus fans came up with the following to immortalize the striker’s feat: «I love green, I love the green strips of Panathinaikos… and tell us where you send them, Vazos? – I put them in the net!»
Vazos – Symeonidis – Raggos: a formidable front line
Vazos’ career at Olympiacos was full of unforgettable moments. The unbeatable front three with Vazos in the center and Theologos Simeonidis and Christoforos Rangos on the wings would bring success after success to the Piraeus team, which remained Greece’s top team throughout the 1930s. Vazos’ presence in the center-forward position energized his team mates, and the goals he slotted home earned the Red and Whites both victories and titles. Vazos’ ability to score from any position and in every possible way struck terror into the opposition defense and sent goal after goal into the back of the net.
«You have to be calm and deliver, because opportunities don’t come along every minute», he said in an interview on Greek state television in 1976. «It’s a team game, so my teammates were crucial,» he added, showcasing the importance of his inter-war partnership with the Piraeus club’s other top players.
Although he limped slightly due to a congenital dysplasia of the feet, he was noted for his speed and acceleration. In the same TV appearance, he revealed the secret of his success: «I always put some spin on my shots. A coach we had back then, Kovac, helped me get good at that».
«Goals are the heart of football and Vazos was the heart of Olympiacos»
Vazos made a crucial contribution to the seven Greek championships (1933, 1934, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1947 and 1948) and one Greek Cup (1947) Olympiacos won during his time as a player at the Club. Every victory and triumph, every title, was proof of his talent and dedication.
At the same time, his fame and influence continued to grow thanks to his duels with great players on the opposing teams. He singled out Gasparis from AEK Athens and Vikelidis from Aris, while his rivalry with another iconic striker, Antonis Migiakis of Panathinaikos, was always the subject of heated discussion among fans and in the press before what is today called the «eternal derby».
He was the top scorer in the Greek league in four separate seasons, the first time in 1933 and the last in 1947. That amazing 14-year gap remains a record to this day.
Along with the Andrianopoulos brothers, Giannis Vazos embodied the spirit of Olympiacos and fully deserves his status as a never-to-be-forgotten Club legend. His story will remain a point of reference no matter how many years go by. And even if his name is not commemorated that often, he remains a source of inspiration and an integral part of the history of Olympiacos and of the streets and neighborhoods from which the Club was born.
