Karipidis free to face Celtic and AEK

WITH the signing having been in place since before the second leg Champions League qualifying match with NK Siroki Brijeg, the arrival yesterday of Greek defender Christos Karipidis could not be claimed to be a reaction to Hearts owner Vladimir Romanov's criticism of Wednesday night's performance.

However, the confirmation that Karipidis had signed a three-year contract with the Tynecastle club proves the team is not yet considered the finished article.

Karipidis goes straight into contention for a place in Sunday's squad for the match against Celtic and the transfer beat the European signing deadline by a matter of hours yesterday. It means he is also available for Hearts' Champions League encounter next week against AEK Athens, a team against whom Karipidis has already enjoyed some success when playing for PAOK Salonika.

The Greek club's skipper played AEK five times in the past two seasons, emerging victorious on three occasions. AEK's new Olympic stadium does not necessarily hold any reason to fear for the 23 year-old, particularly now that the home fans, according to Karipidis, have become becalmed since former striker Demis Nikolaidis was appointed club president. One of the legendary striker's main ambitions was to stamp out the hooligan element at the club.

"Their supporters are still very fanatical but not violent," said Karipidis, who would have been lining up against AEK this weekend for Salonika had his move to Scotland not been finalised yesterday. The delay was due to the financially-troubled PAOK's desire to hold out for a bigger fee for the player, and an improved offer from Hearts - thought to be in the region of £200,000 - pushed the transfer through in time for Karipidis to make a quick return home later this month.

"The Hearts supporters will not have to fear anything [in Athens]," he continued.

Karipidis believes Hearts have a good chance of progressing against AEK and wants to play his part. He has already heard much about the club from compatriot Takis Fyssas, whose information on what to expect included a glowing appraisal of the man who Karipidis is likely to partner in defence, Steven Pressley. "I have heard a lot about him," said Karipidis. "He is a real captain - not just on the field but off it too. Takis told me he likes to solves other players' problems.

"It is a great honour for me to play with that kind of player."

Taken from the Scotsman