SPIELFELD
04/17/2020

My tattoo with Konstantinos Stafylidis

Konstantinos "Kostas" Stafylidis stands out – on the pitch for his physical style of play, off it for the tattoos adorning his body. The 26-year-old Greece international is a big tattoo fan. In SPIELFELD, he revealed his favourite and spoke about the passion that runs through the veins beneath that skin.

Kostas, how many works of art cover your body. What's your favourite tattoo?

"Specifically from a football perspective, it's obviously the slide tackle on my left calf. It embodies my passion but my job too. It clearly illustrates the kind of player I am: hard and physical – on myself, the ball and my opponent. That doesn't mean I want to hurt my opponents. But I can't accept that somebody wants to dance past me or wants to make a mockery of me on the pitch. That's why the tattoo clearly shows that only the ball or the opponent will get past me – but not both at the same time."

Are you proud of your style of play?

"Everyone has their own way of playing football. It's not something you choose, it something that lies within. And that's mine; and yes, I'm proud of it. For me as a defender, the goal is like my house: I don't let anyone in, and there will be trouble for anyone who does try to get in. My team-mates are like my family, I need to protect them and my house – hence my style. That's what the tattoo represents."

AS Roma legend Daniele De Rossi has the same tattoo…

"Yes, I saw it on him and thought to myself: Wow, that's a great motif. He was one of the best defensive players in history and I liked his style: he always played a hard and an aggressive game, and always gave 100%. I felt it suited me too and that's why I had the tattoo done on my calf."

When did you get your first tattoo done?

"I was still a teenager at the time. In 2012, we reached the final of the U19 European Championship with Greece before losing to Spain. After the tournament, I called my father and told him that I wanted to get a tattoo done following this incredible experience – only one and only a little one (laughs). That was the cross on my chest – and many others followed. And every time I told him: 'That's the last one.' At some point he just said that it's my body and my life, and that I needed to decide myself. I like my tattoos, my face is the only area where I wouldn't get a tattoo done. Not because of how it would look, but simply because it'd be too painful." (laughs)

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