Xanthi FC is hoping to become “a production line” for Australian players trying to break into the realm of European the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Entrepreneur and NPL NSW side Sydney Olympic chairman Bill Papas acquired the Greek team in August and dove straight into bringing in the Aussie talent.
A star studded line up including former Socceroos Josh Brillante and Matt Jurman, ex-Adelaide United goalkeeper Paul Izzo and Wellington Phoenix utility Callan Elliot have already joined former Perth Glory coach Tony Popovic in Greece.
Papas hopes that this decision will push for Australian players and coaches to be seen as quality team members in the foreign football arena.
READ MORE: Tony Popovic leaves A-League club Perth Glory to coach newly acquired Xanthi FC in Greece
He believes that often Aussies are overlooked and judged by their passport rather than their ability.
“I think we are very much underrated in terms of our the coaching stocks…we underrate ourselves, we underrate our own players,” Papas said.
It was only recently that Xanthi was relegated to the second division of the Greek Super League after points were deducted as a penalty for ownership irregularities.
READ MORE: Point deduction ban to remain for PAOK and Xanthi
The entrepreneur is betting that the talent that has been shipped over from down under will catapult the team back into the first division, making them contenders for more European placements and revenue through possible transfers.
“We have a great youth talent pool here in Australia that is wasted, and it doesn’t know where to go. We want to prove [that] very quickly through recruiting some A-League players and progressing some youngsters overseas, and certainly now we have the means and the vehicle in Xanthi to be able to demonstrate that,” Papas said.
In the meantime, Papas ensures he will not be scaling back his financial support for Olympic and will be focusing on getting the team to be a part of a mooted A-League second division given a sustainable model is available.