Panos Retsos has been a Verona player since Tuesday evening (25/01). The Greece international successfully passed medical tests and subsequently signed a contract until 2023, which will be automatically extended for another three years if he catches a certain number of appearances.

The tall defender left Leverkusen after 3.5 years with two spells on loan at Sheffield United and St. Etienne, and now he is facing a new challenge in his career. The truth is he has been suffering from injuries for the last two years while the coronavirus has put him… on a tripod and not allowed him to – as he wanted – live the Premier League dream with Sheffield.

At the same time, the league leaders from Leverkusen preferred to invest in other cases of stoppers, with the result that his playing time this season is limited. However, as often as he struggled, he showed that he is in good shape and has weathered the difficulties, showing that he is ready to get the “train” back on the rails.

The preparation with Verona and the interest from France – Portugal

It finally turned out during the winter transfer window. With his contract expiring next summer, Retsos had the opportunity to sign with a team of his choice from January 1st. Several teams showed interest and considered his case, which came from the French, Portuguese and Italian championships.

However, the one who showed the greatest will and desire to acquire it was Verona. Preparations began in about three weeks, early January. The Greek management office “Fair Football”, which Retso represents, had informed the Leverkusen team, of course in cooperation with LIAN Sports, that Verona wanted to take over the national defender immediately.

In fact, the German team’s officials were not initially very positive about his concession, with key stoppers Edmond Tapsoba and Odilon Kousounou absent from the Africa Cup of Nations with Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast respectively. Therefore, the possibilities for backwards were limited. That’s why they had made it clear to both the player’s representatives and those in charge of Verona that the developments will start after January 22nd.

When it happened. Verona, as you can read on Sportish, agreed to take over Retso on a free transfer and to offer Leverkusen a 10% as a percentage of resale. The Greek defender traveled to the Italian city on Monday (01/24) together with his representatives Christos Apostolou and Michalis Retso, completed the procedures and wore the “Jaloblou” for the first time on Tuesday (01/25).

The contract, Tudor and the 3-4-2-1

It’s worth noting that although initially they were talking about a 3.5-year contract, Verona demanded a 4.5-year contract, with both sides finding a 1.5+3-year contract. With +3, as we said before, to be activated in case the 23-year-old stopper catches a certain number of entries. In relation to his annual salary, it will be as high as in Leverkusen, i.e. just over 1,000,000 euros.

However, the most important thing for the Greece centre-back is that he joins a team that believes in his potential very much. The team’s coach Igor Tudor, who spent the 2015/16 season on the PAOK bench, sees him as the ideal successor to Niccolo Casale, who will continue his career at Lazio and has essentially been the pillar of the back line this season.

Tudor has chosen the -classic for Italian teams- 3-4-2-1 layout. A decision that was 100% made and that has brought Verona to a very good place in the Italian Championship, being in 9th place with 33 points and -3 of the European tickets. The fact that the goal of remaining in the class was achieved (very) early on gives Tudor the opportunity to try things out, but also to offer Retsos the time he needs to develop his virtues.

After all, at 23, he seems more prepared and determined than ever to get his career back on track. The Italian championship seems to suit the Greek stoppers, so everything is on its feet from now on.