Brighton signs teenage forward Kostoulas from Champions League-bound Olympiakos
Olympiacos’ Charalampos Kostoulas, right, in action during the Youth League Final against AC Milan at the Colovray Sports Centre in Nyon, Switzerland, Monday, April 22, 2024. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP, file)
LONDON (AP) — Brighton has signed teenage forward Charalampos Kostoulas, who gave up a Champions League season with Olympiakos to play in the Premier League.
The 18-year-old Kostoulas signed a five-year contract, Brighton said, with the transfer fee reportedly set at an initial 35 million euros ($40.4 million).
“It is a dream for everybody to come here and play football,” the Greece Under-21 striker said in an interview published Friday by Brighton.
He scored seven goals in 22 games in the Greek league as Olympiakos won a record-extending 48th title and completed a trophy double in the domestic cup.
Olympiakos was elevated directly into the lucrative Champions League opening phase — because title-holder Paris Saint-Germain already secured a place by winning the French league — and will play eight games in the single-standings league.
Brighton finished eighth in the Premier League and did not qualify for European soccer.
Kostoulas was the central striker in Olympiakos’ Under-19 team that won the 2024 UEFA Youth League, one month before the senior team won the Conference League.
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