Konstantinos Karetsas: Genk's mini-Martin Odegaard who rejected Man City and is now on a path to Greek glory

For many years, it seemed as if Konstantinos Karetsas would choose to represent Belgium, the country of his birth, at international level. The diminutive playmaker had played for the Red Devils' various youth teams, and given he had spent his whole life living within their borders, that was a natural assumption to make.

But even after featuring for Belgium's Under-21s as recently as October 2024, Karetsas had a change of heart and sought to switch allegiance to Greece, the country of his parents. Now, the Ethniki are building one almighty squad full of new-age wonderkids to challenge for future honours, with the likes of Miroslav Klose-taught Christos Tzolis, Charalampos 'Babistuta' Kostoulas and midfield magician Christos Mouzakitis already featuring among our NXGN series.

So what makes Karetsas also worthy of a place in Greece's golden generation? And why did he decide to jump on this train rather than continue riding the Belgian one? GOAL has the lowdown...