Brighton set to sign Greek sensation Charalampos Kostoulas in £29.8m deal

Brighton have fended off interest from multiple European clubs to agree a £29.78m deal for highly-rated Olympiacos striker Charalampos Kostoulas.

The prodigious forward reportedly underwent a medical with the Seagulls on Thursday and has put pen to paper on a lucrative five-year contract.

Should a £1.7m add-on included in the deal be fulfilled, Kostoulas will become the most expensive Greek signing of all time, eclipsing the £30.6m Napoli paid Roma for Kostas Manolas in 2019.

The fee is already the highest a Greek club has received for a player, almost doubling the £16.6m Wolves paid to sign Daniel Podence from Olympiacos five years ago.

Kostoulas progressed through the Olympiacos academy and helped the club win the UEFA Youth League before making made his debut for the senior team at the start of the 2024/25 campaign under Jose Luis Mendilibar.

He netted his first goal in the fierce derby against PAOK Salonika and added five more to his account in his breakthrough season as Olympiacos went on to seal the Double by claiming the Greek Super League and Greek Football Cup titles.

Kostoulas' emergence alerted an array of Premier League sides including Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham, while a number of Europe's elite in the shape of Bayern Munich and Milan were also credited with an interest in the effervescent forward.

However, it's Brighton who have won the race for Kostoulas, who have developed an impeccable reputation for acquiring obscure talents from around the world and moulding them into Premier League stars.

A technically-supreme, mobile forward, Kostoulas is adept at playing a variety of positions in attack and fits the mould of a versatile forward which Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler prefers to utilise.

Kostoulas, who is nicknamed 'Babistuta' for his resemblance to Argentina legend Gabriel Batistuta, is the son of former Olympiacos centre-back Thanassis Kostoulas.

The arrival of Kostoulas at the Amex Stadium comes several months after the Seagulls acquired his compatriot Stefanos Tzimas from FC Nurnberg in a £20.8m deal.

Jaquob Crooke

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