John Limniatis

John Limniatis
Personal information
Date of birth (1967-06-24) 24 June 1967
Place of birth Athens, Greece
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Playing position Manager (former Midfielder)
Club information
Current team
 Unattached
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1987 Ottawa Pioneers 19 (0)
1988 Ottawa Intrepid 9 (0)
1988–1992 Aris Thessaloniki F.C. 94 (1)
1992–1993 Panetolikos 20 (0)
1993–1998 Montreal Impact 126 (2)
1999 Charleston Battery 25 (0)
2000–2001 Montreal Impact 24 (0)
National team
1987–1997 Canada 44 (1)
Teams managed
2008–2009 Montreal Impact (1992–2011)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.


John Limniatis (born 24 June 1967 in Athens, Greece) is a retired Canadian professional footballer. He played 44 times and scored one goal for the Canadian national soccer team and was formerly the head coach of the Montreal Impact.

Club career

Before migrating to Canada with his family, Limniatis used to train with the players of Greek Third Division side Iliasiakos in the 1970s, taking shots at legendary Greek goalkeeper Nikos Sarganis.[1]

After beginning his pro career in 1987 with the Ottawa Pioneers of the Canadian Soccer League, Limniatis played professionally in Greece with First Division side Aris Thessaloniki F.C. in 1987 and '88 and Panetolikos in the Second Division from 1988 to '92. He then joined the Montreal Impact in 1993 and remained with the club until 1998, then played again for them in 2000 and 2001 playing 151 games and 13,976 minutes. Liminatis played both outdoors in the A-League and indoors in the National Professional Soccer League both with the Impact and the Kansas City Attack in 1995-96. He later played on loan from Montreal for the Charleston Battery in 1999.

Limniatis was named 1994 A-League Rookie of the Year and 1996 and '97 Defender of the Year.

International career

A defender or midfielder, Limniatis made his debut for Canada in a September 1987 friendly match against El Salvador, He earned a total of 44 caps, scoring 1 goal. He has represented Canada in 8 FIFA World Cup qualification matches [2] in three unsuccessful World Cup qualifying campaigns.

His final international game was a March 1997 World Cup qualification match against the United States.

International goals

Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first.
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 3 July 1991 Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States  Jamaica 3-1 3-2 1991 CONCACAF Gold Cup

Managerial career

He spent his last years with the Impact as their assistant coach, indoor head coach, and later director of operations. He was coach for the Montreal Impact until Marc Dos Santos was named as interim head coach following Limniatis' termination by the Impact board.[3]

Personal life

Limniatis's hometown is Laval, Quebec, Limniatis has two daughters, Alexia and Nikki. His cousin is a pro basketball player in Greece.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.canada.com/story_print.html?id=a457f5bd-a8a3-461f-ace3-ac9c324e6807&sponsor=
  2. ↑ Record at FIFA Tournaments - FIFA
  3. ↑ Impact fire Limniatis, name Marc Dos Santos interim head coach. He was the seventh head coach in Impact history.
Preceded by
Nick De Santis		 Montreal Impact Head Coach
2008–2009 		Succeeded by
Marc Dos Santos
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