West Ham United are delighted to announce the signing of Greece international Konstantinos Mavropanos.
The centre-back – known to his family, friends and teammates as 'Dinos' – arrives at London Stadium from German Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart on a five-year contract for an undisclosed fee.
Capped 19 times by his country, Athens-born Mavropanos is a dominant presence at 6’4, a defender who plays on the front foot and is now looking forward to bringing his extensive range of talents to east London.
“I am really happy and excited to be here – and to be back in the Premier League with West Ham United,” said the new No15, who made his Premier League debut as an Arsenal player in 2018.
“It’s an exciting time to be joining the Club after last season’s Conference League win – and I am really looking forward to the next step in my career. I can promise the fans I will give everything for them and the shirt.”
David Moyes expressed his pleasure at bringing a player to the Club who led the Bundesliga in interceptions made last season, and who has established himself as an automatic starter for his country.
“I’m pleased to welcome Konstantinos to West Ham United,” said the manager, who adds Mavropanos to a stable of central defenders that also includes Kurt Zouma, Nayef Aguerd, Angelo Ogbonna and the versatile Thilo Kehrer.
“We’ve been looking to add to our centre-half options this summer, so it’s good we’ve been able to bring in an international defender of his ability.
“We’re really looking forward to integrating him into the group.”
Born in Athens in December 1997, Mavropanos started his career with local club Apollon Smyrnis as a ten-year-old before signing his first professional contract with PAS Giannina in the northern city of Ioannina in 2016.
The tall, physically imposing defender debuted in a Greek Cup win over Agrotikos at 18 years and eleven months and totaled 20 appearances for PAS, including 16 in the Super League, while still a teenager.
In January 2018, Arsenal brought him to north London, and he made his first appearance for the Gunners in a Premier League fixture against Manchester United three months later. The youngster played eight times across 18 months before being loaned to German side 1. FC Nürnberg in January 2020.
Impressive performances there saw him sign a new Arsenal contract and be loaned to Bundesliga club Stuttgart for each of the next two seasons, 2020/21 and 2021/22. After netting five goals in 55 appearances, he made the transfer permanent in May 2022 and added another 34 games and three goals last term.
For Greece, Mavropanos was capped at U21 level before making his senior debut in a friendly win over Honduras in March 2021. Since then, he has hardly missed a game, starting four FIFA World Cup qualifiers, six UEFA Nations League ties and all three UEFA European Championship qualifiers played so far.
Everyone at West Ham United would like to welcome Konstantinos to London Stadium and wish him every success in Claret and Blue.
