Choutos set to check-out of Nea Smyrni

By: Peter Katsiris | January 29th, 2009

The Lambros Choutos soap-opera is likely nearing its finale, as the former Greece international confirmed he is on his way out of Nea Smyrni.

While he played a giant role in bringing Fabian Estoyanoff and Alvaro Recoba to Greece, another altercation between Choutos and management appears to be the final straw for both parties.

This past weekend’s refusal to suit up for Panionios during his side’s trip to the OAKA Spyros Louis Stadium to face AEK Athens. The former Olympiacos striker agreed to take part in the match after being named to the pre-weekend roster, but he pulled out of the team after being told he would start the match on the sidelines.

The weekend’s events were just another chapter to the long saga of controversy, which swallowed the club at the start of autumn. While the club made a managerial switch by dropping Ewald Lienen for Takis Lemonis, Choutos did little to improve the situation within the Athenian outfit.

Previously sent down to Panionios’ youth ranks, it was reported that Choutos would not return to the first team until season’s end. Another managerial overhaul marked the end of that, and Choutos returned to the Panionios scene on matchday thirteen.

Tipped to be Panionios’ prolific saviour, Choutos signed with the Athenian side in a bid to kick-start a rebellious Super League revolution for the ‘Kyanerythri’. While the beginning of his stay with Panionios looked very satisfying, the tail-end of last season ended with a sour taste for the former ‘Nerrazurri’ striker.

A physical altercation with management tarnished the start of Choutos’ stay at Nea Smyrni, but a long summer of reassuring helped fans to forget about Choutos’ antics.

Now they will likely not see or hear from the striker, at least not while wearing a Panionios uniform. Speaking with popular Greek sports radio station NOVASPORTS FM, Choutos confirmed he was headed for the Nea Smyrni exit.