Sofia Sakalis

Sofia Sakalis (born 11 July 2002) is an Australian soccer player currently playing for Perth Glory in the A-League Women. She has represented Australia in the Australia U-17 and Australia U-20. Sakalis plays in the attacking midfielder position.

Sofia Sakalis
Personal information
Full name Sofia Sakalis
Date of birth (2002-07-11) 11 July 2002
Place of birth East Melbourne, Australia
Position(s) Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Perth Glory
Number 12
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2021 Melbourne City 5 (0)
2021– Perth Glory 11 (1)
National team‡
2016–2017 Australia U-17 8 (12)
2018– Australia U-20 2 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 31 October 2018

Early life

Sakalis, who is of Greek-Australian background, showed interest in soccer at the age of three and began playing two years later.[1][2] When she first started playing, coaches assigned her to teams with boys her age but advanced her to play with older boys.[1] At age 13, her performance at the National Championships earned her call-ups to three training camps with the Junior Matildas, Australia's under-17 national team.[1]

Playing career

Melbourne City, 2017–2021

After training with Melbourne City FC in 2015–16, Sakalis signed with the team for the 2017–18 season at the age of 15.[3] She made her debut for the club during the team's 5–2 win over the Newcastle Jets on 12 November.[4][5]

Perth Glory, 2021–present

Sofia signed with Perth Glory ahead of the 2021–22 season.[6]

International

Sakalis competed with the Junior Matildas[7][8] at the 2017 AFC U-16 Women's Championship qualification tournament in Vietnam where they finished first in their group with an undefeated record.[9] During the team's first group match against Palestine, Sakalis scored five goals,[10] and scored a total of 11 goals over 5 games.[11] She was the top scorer at the qualifying tournament, helping Australia secure a place at the 2017 AFC U-16 Women's Championship in Thailand.[9][12]

Honours

Sakalis was named 2016 Sport Stars of the Year with Olympic boxer Jason Whateley by the Whitehorse Leader.[13]

References
  1. Komarkowski, Antonia (21 June 2017). "Sofia Sakalis 15-year-old Soccer star". Greek City Times. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  2. "City sign trio for Westfield W-League season". W-League. 24 September 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  3. "Complete preview for each W-League team for season 2017/18". News.com.au. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  4. "S. Sakalis". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  5. "A day to remember for Sakalis and Muldeary". Melbourne City FC. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  6. "Midfield duo board w-league 2021/22 campaign". Perth Glory. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  7. Stogiannou, George (5 August 2016). "Sakalis selected for Junior Matildas in AFC qualifying tournament in Vietnam". Neos Kosmos. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  8. "Juric names squad for AFC U-16 qualifiers". Westfield Matildas. 3 August 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  9. "Junior Matildas complete qualifiers with perfect record". The Women's Game. 3 December 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  10. "Junior Matildas' easy win in Vietnam". Westfield Matildas. 25 August 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  11. Turner, David (25 September 2016). "Vermont South's Sofia Sakalis is a rising soccer star with the world at her feet". Whitehorse Leader. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  12. "World champions Korea DPR target Asian treble". FIFA. 8 September 2017. Archived from the original on 9 September 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  13. Naughtin, Paddy (22 November 2016). "Soccer star Sofia Sakalis and Olympic boxer Jason Whateley named 2016 Whitehorse Leader Sport Stars". Whitehorse Leader. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
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