Dimitrios Nikolaou (; born 13 August 1998) is a Greek professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Bari, on loan from Palermo.
On 29 January 2017, Nikolaou made his debut with the club in a 2âÂÂ1 away Super League win against Veria. A month later, he scored his first goal in a 2âÂÂ0 Greek Cup win game against Aris.
On 18 October 2017, Nikolaou scored an own goal and headed goal for his team in a 3âÂÂ1 away loss in the 2017âÂÂ18 UEFA Champions League group stage against Barcelona.
On 28 January 2019, the 20-year-old Dimitris Nikolaou departed Piraeus, signing for Serie A club Empoli on loan for the remainder of the 2018âÂÂ19 season, with a purchase option at the range of â¬3.5 million. This season, Nikolaou has largely been sitting on the sidelines with Olympiacos, only participating in one Greek Football Cup match. The young defender is regarded as a prospect for the future and will hope to receive regular playing time with Empoli. On 15 April 2019, he made his debut with the club in a 0âÂÂ0 away draw game against Atalanta.
On 2 June 2019, Empoli activated the option of the 20-year-old international defender, who reportedly was worth â¬3.5 million. Nikolaou played in four games at Campionato, and the leaders of the Italian club decided to activate the option of the young Greek defender despite their relegation. Nikolaou signed for four years for an undisclosed fee. The announcement from the Italian club stated: "Empoli announces that he has exercised the right to buy, and signed the young international Dimitris Nikolaou from Olympiacos."
Since the end of the 2020âÂÂ21 season, it was obvious that Dimitris Nikolaou's performances with the Empoli jersey, leading it to the Serie B title and the promotion to Serie A, would hardly keep the 23-year-old central defender in the Azzurri, especially since he was in the last year of his contract. His coach, Alessio Dionisi, wanted him in Sassuolo since he became head coach at the beginning of summer 2021, while at the same time, the technical director who brought him to Empoli, Riccardo Pecini, wanted him in his own new team Spezia Calcio, with which he will sign a five-year contract and will increase more than double his current earnings. On 13 August 2021, he scored his first goal with the club in a Coppa Italia away 3-1 win game against Pordenone Calcio.
On 14 July 2024, Serie B club Palermo announced the signing of Nikolaou from Spezia on a four-year contract, with the player reuniting with his former coach Alessio Dionisi.
After a lacklustre season with the Rosanero, on 18 July 2025, he was loaned out to fellow Serie B club Bari.
As of 1 May 2024 (UTC).
Empoli
Olympiacos