When Stagg’s George Panou was 5, he was introduced to soccer by his grandfather, also named George, and his father, Peter.
“We would watch soccer on TV,” he said. “Manchester United was our team to watch.”
His father and grandfather still keep an eye on soccer. But besides watching the international professional scene, they also get to see George live and in person on the pitch and have been entertained.
Panou is a major part of a talented junior class at the Palos Hills school as the Chargers have gotten off to a 6-2-1 start that included a 1-1 draw with Public League power Taft and a 3-1 victory over District 230 rival Sandburg.
After going 16-5-1 using several sophomores in the lineup in 2025, this season’s start is no surprise. In fact, just a few years ago a big 2026 campaign seemed to be in the cards.
“I knew we would be good by junior or senior year,” Panou said. “Most of us played together a long time.”
It was no secret what was coming.
“I heard rumblings,” veteran Chargers coach Mike Kealy said. “During eighth-grade parent night I heard about the young men who were coming to Stagg to play. A couple chose to stay with club their freshman year, but they were all here their sophomore year.”
Along with Panou, Richard Aceves, Victor Czajkowski, David Gorz, Keagan Greer, Conor Jones, Kelvin Kalemba, Christian Komosinski, Jakub Krol, Karol Lesniak, Adrian Magana, Bartosz Woznik, Nour Youssef and Jan Zeglen make up a strong junior class on the Chargers roster.
Kealy doesn’t compile stats during the season, but he said Panou has been used just about everywhere on the pitch.
“He plays multiple positions from CAM (central attacking midfielder) to winger to striker to forward,” Kealy said. “He’s very versatile. He will play wherever you need him to play.
“These days a lot of players like to play the wing and the flank. There is a lot of glory and not as much responsibility on defense. But he welcomes the challenge whether it’s playing up front back-to-goal or being creative as a midfielder, taking on players on the wing.”
Kealy said the key to the early-season success is that there are a few other players on the team who can play multiple positions.
“We can mix and match,” Kealy said. “We don’t have a superstar. I can’t remember the last time we had one.
“I prefer a balanced team where an opponent can’t take out one player.”
Though the Chargers had a dip with recent losses to Morton and Shepard, Panou is still excited about his team.
“We’ll be all right,” he said. “We’re still kind of young, but we’ll be OK.”