A centre back by trade, Eliopoulos’ time in Europe have seen him deployed in defensive midfield and as a right back as well.

“I’m a defender but I’ve played a lot of midfield this season. It’s been good to develop my game,” he said.

Eliopoulos admits when he first arrived at APOEL from the Victorian NPL it was hard to adapt. But after four years he is well-adjusted.

“It was a bit of a culture shock coming to Cyrpus at first because it’s all about football,” he said.

“They’re crazy here for football, the fans. It was a really good experience being at APOEL and training with high-quality players. It was a shock to the system.

“But it just made me realize that a few weeks in any team and you can adapt really easy to it. At the start it might seem scary and never-wracking, but after a few weeks you get into the rhythm of things and adjust to the intensity.

“Cyprus is a beautiful country. It’s been awesome. It’s very laid-back. The weather is amazing. The football is really good. It’s professional, we’re training every day even in the second league.

“A lot of people don’t understand the quality here. It’s surprising, because I wasn’t expecting the second league to be this professional. Compared to Australia, it’s a big jump. But it’s a lot more cut-throat in Europe.

“You’re always competing with your teammates for contracts. There’s friends, but on the field there’s no friends.”

Eliopoulos is now plotting his next move and waiting for the season to resume.

His professional career has been a merry-go-round, but the defender has learned to roll with the punches and still come up swinging.

“I take the positives from it because I was with such a big club at the time and then it all sort of all came crashing time,” he said.

“But I knew I could play at that level. But sometimes you have to do the hard yards as well. I think I’ve done that the last three seasons now.

“I’ve had three good years, but it’s just finding that one coach or one agent who believes in you and puts his faith in you to sign you. I’m sure when that comes they won’t be disappointed.

“Now I just have to wait to see what happens and then I can organize myself for the next season and see what’s available.”