Panagiotis Kone arrived in Melbourne last Friday. Setting foot on Australian soil for the first time, the Western United FC player appeared relax, optimistic and seemed to be enjoying the first days in his new home. The 31-year-old denied any feelings of jitters or pressures of being the marquee man of a new club.

The Greek, who arrived in Australia, with World Cup experience and stints in Greece, France, Italy and Spain, told Neos Kosmos that he was excited to be entering this new chapter in his career and is embracing the challenge.

“Everything I heard was true”

The former AEK, Fiorentina and Bologna player seemed impressed from everything he had seen from the city so far, and is enjoying the “vibe”. Without knowing much about Melbourne, but also Australia in general, this trip was a bit of an “eye-opener” for the footballer.

“Everything my agent, Mike, told me is true. The quality of life is very high. This is a new city without a lot of history, unlike what we’re used to in Greece or Italy where I lived for seven years. The people here are very hospitable. There are also a lot of different cultures living here and all of these things combine very nicely,” he said.

“We need to write the first chapter of the book”

Although he has not yet gotten into the spirit of the A-League, Kone points out that the current target for the newly created club of Western United needs to be the creation of a team that plays attractive football in order to get fans to keep coming back to the stadium. He admits to not following the local championship.

“From the moment my agent brought me the proposal, I began following it and I’ve noticed that in the past few years, there’s been progress,” Kone said.

“The people from the Football Federation and those around the sport in general are making an effort to improve the situation. Of course, it’s nowhere near the European level, but there’s an effort being made and that’s highly appreciated.”

There are some details of the contract to be ironed out, however if the deal goes through Kone sees the team like “an open book in which we need to write the first chapter. We’re like the authors of this book, this team is only now beginning and the first chapter always needs to be the most interesting so that the readers (fans) will continue to follow the story.”

READ MORE: Sticca: We’re proud to have Kone at our club 

The sacrifices of professionalism

Kone likes to keep a low profile. He opens up about the difficulties he faced in his career, which is something that every footballer is forced to deal with from the outset.

Now in a leadership role, Kone hopes to meet expectations. “But I wouldn’t call myself a leader, since I’m very simple as a person. At every club I’ve played at, I’ve always maintained a good relationship with both my teammates, the fans and the board members. So I hope my experience can offer great things to my new teammates, the younger players and the club in general. But, from there on, I don’t know about the ‘leader’ title. I just hope I am able to give what I want and what the fans and the club are expecting from me to give.”

Kone understands that he is considered a role model, but points out that many footballers of his level can be considered as such.

“To go after championships and to constantly perform at these levels like all of us do – that demands sacrifices. Many of the things that I didn’t get to do when I was young and the sacrifices that I’ve made, I believe those are the things that kids need to look at. Not who I am now,” he said.

“Kids need to understand that you have to give up many things in your life in order to reach this level. And that’s the role model that every child that wants to be a professional should be looking at, that they need to follow this procedure just like all athletes that are trying to make a name for themselves.

As a footballer since the age of 16, Kone feels he has given up a lot. He moved away from home at that age, went to France (RC Lens) and turned pro. He has essentially been supporting himself financially since he was a child. There’s stress and pressure, but wisdom is also required.

“Our career is over once we hit 33 to 36 years of age. That’s when other people finish their education and go out to look for a job. So all of the pressure that a footballer feels, the stress, the necessity to follow his schedule, to eat right, to sleep right, to perform well (since fans have high demands) from such a young age, all these are the things that make a professional athlete’s life difficult,” he said.

“And these are the difficulties that young athletes need to cope with. Others can handle the pressure and move on to make a career and others crumble and fall.”

About new beginnings

Kone has made the most of his time here in Melbourne. While searching for the right location to purchase his new house, he also had the chance to catch up on the Formula One Grand Prix.

Life is looking good for Kone.