Sotiris Balafas is a Greek

Greeks

The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

 footballer currently playing for PAOK. He is a defensive midfielder known for his defensive awareness, his tackling and heading skills as well as his pace and strength.

Club career

Balafas started his career in Anagennisi Artas and became integral part of the team at very young age. Interestingly enough, he was mostly performing the duties of a centre back in his old club in contrary to his role in PAOK.

In the summer of 2005 he was picked up by PAOK

PAOK FC

P.A.O.K. F.C. is a Greek association football club based in Thessaloniki, Greece. It is the largest supported football club in Macedonia.PAOK FC is the football department of Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of Constantinopolitans , a multi-sport club. Since its formation in 1926 the football club...

 for a transfer fee of 80,000 Euros. After a while he became a first-team option. In the 2007–2008 season he was the first choice defensive midfielder for most part of the season and was cooperating well with newcomer Ricardo Matias Verón

Ricardo Matias Verón

Ricardo Matias Verón is an Argentine football midfielder who plays for Greek Superleague side OFI.Verón started his professional career at San Lorenzo in the Primera Division Argentina in 1999. In 2001 he was sold to Reggina. He has spent time on loan at Salernitana in Italy, at Lanús and San...

.

Holding a secondary role in Fernando Santos's plans for the 2009–2010 season, Balafas agreed during the pre-season to move on loan to the newly-promoted PAS Giannina for one year. It was reported that the main reason for his choice to play for a minor club, was the possibility to work again with his mentor Georgios Paraschos

Georgios Paraschos

Georgios Paraschos is a Greek football manager and former player.-Playing career:As a football player, he began his career from the youth academy of P.A.O.K in 1967. He became a professional player in 1971 and played with the Kastoria team until 1985, making appearances for the club in the Alpha...

.

At 2011-12 season, after a lot of injures of the most playable players of the team, balafas take his chances for the Europa League in this season and after the winning goal against FC Karpaty Lviv

FC Karpaty Lviv

FC Karpaty Lviv is a Ukrainian professional football club from the city of Lviv. Named after the Carpathian Mountains, they are one of perennial mid-table clubs in Ukraine.-Early years :...

 became again a fan favorite and giving that his coach László Bölöni give him chances of playing time.

International career

He has been a basic part of the Greece national under-21 football team along with former PAOK teammates Stelios Iliadis

Stelios Iliadis

Stelios Iliadis is a Greek footballer who is currently playing for Iraklis Thessaloniki F.C. in Greek Super League.-Apollon Kalamarias:...

 and Lazaros Christodoulopoulos

Lazaros Christodoulopoulos

Lazaros Christodoulopoulos is a Greek footballer currently playing for Panathinaikos FC.Christodoulopoulos is considered one of the most promising young players in Greece. He is member of the Greek national team...

, being capped for more than 10 times.

Club statistics

|-
|2004–05
|Anagennisi Arta

Anagennisi Arta F.C.

Anagennisi Artas is a Greek football club, based in Arta,in the North-West part of Greece. The emblem of the team depicts the historical bridge of Arta. The club was established in 1960 from the union between local Arta clubs Panambrakikos, Aetosand Olympiacos. The colours of club are BLACK-WHITE....

|Football League
|21||2||1||0|||0||0||22||2
|-
|2005–06
|PAOK
|Superleague
|17||0||1||0||4||0||22||0
|-
|2006–07
|PAOK
|Superleague
|23||2||4||0||0||0||27||2
|-
|2007–08
|PAOK
|Superleague
|24||3||1||0||0||0||25||3
|-
|2008–09
|PAOK
|Superleague
|23||0||3||0||0||0||26||0
|-
|2009–10
|PAS Giannina

PAS Giannina

PAS Giannina , the Panepirotic Athletic Association Giannina, is a Greek association football club based in the city of Ioannina, the capital of Greece’s Epirus region.Following the 2010–11 season, PAS was promoted to Greece’s Super League division...

|Superleague
|11||0||0||0||0||0||11||0
|-
|2009–10
|Ergotelis F.C.
|Superleague
|8||0||0||0||0||0||8||0
|-
|2010–11
|PAOK
|Superleague
|6||0||1||0||1||0||8||0
|-
|2011–12

2011–12 Superleague Greece

The 2011–12 Superleague Greece is the 53rd season of the highest football league of Greece and the sixth under the name Superleague. The season will begin in late August or early September 2011 and will end in May 2012 with the last matches of the European playoff round...

|PAOK
|Superleague
|6||2||0||0||4||1||10||3
|-
139||8||11||0||9||1||159||10
|-
|2006||4||0
|-
|2007||5||1
|-
|2008||3||0
|-
|2009||1||0
|-
!Total||13||1
|}

"Statistics accurate as of 3 October 2011"