Brighton signs teenage forward Kostoulas from Champions League-bound Olympiakos

LONDON (AP) - Brighton has signed teenage forward Charalampos Kostoulas, who gave up a Champions League season with Olympiakos to play in the Premier League.

The 18-year-old Kostoulas signed a five-year contract, Brighton said, with the transfer fee reportedly set at an initial 35 million euros ($40.4 million).

"It is a dream for everybody to come here and play football," the Greece Under-21 striker said in an interview published Friday by Brighton.

He scored seven goals in 22 games in the Greek league as Olympiakos won a record-extending 48th title and completed a trophy double in the domestic cup.

Olympiakos was elevated directly into the lucrative Champions League opening phase - because title-holder Paris Saint-Germain already secured a place by winning the French league - and will play eight games in the single-standings league.

Brighton finished eighth in the Premier League and did not qualify for European soccer.

Kostoulas was the central striker in Olympiakos' Under-19 team that won the 2024 UEFA Youth League, one month before the senior team won the Conference League.