Nikos Karelis

2.1. Ergotelis

Karelis made his professional debut on 20 April 2008, during the final day of the 2007-08 Greek Super League season. He entered the match as a second-half substitute in the 78th minute during Ergotelis's 2-0 victory over Skoda Xanthi. This appearance made him the youngest player to ever be fielded for Ergotelis in a Super League match. In the 2008-09 season, his playing time was limited to just two senior appearances, totaling only 17 minutes. In August 2009, he was offered and signed a new three-year contract.

He saw more action in the 2009-10 season, making six appearances, primarily providing cover for veteran strikers like Māris Verpakovskis and Sergio Leal. Karelis scored a memorable goal during a friendly game against Olympiacos on 6 September 2009, commemorating Ergotelis's 80th anniversary. He netted the fifth goal in a comprehensive 5-0 victory over the reigning champions. The 2010-11 Superleague proved to be his best season for Ergotelis, with 13 appearances, two of which were as a starter. He scored his first Super League goal in the final fixture, converting a penalty kick in a 4-0 away win against Panserraikos. He made another 9 appearances in the 2011-12 season, a season that concluded with the club's relegation to the Football League. Following Ergotelis's relegation, Karelis sought a move, and despite interest from other Super League clubs, he signed with Russian Premier League side Amkar Perm.

2.2. Amkar Perm

On 30 July 2012, Karelis officially signed with Amkar Perm. He made his debut for the Russian club on 12 August 2012 against FC Mordovia Saransk. However, he spent most of his time at Amkar Perm as a substitute. He made a total of nine league appearances and one cup appearance during the 2012-13 season before departing the club at the end of the season.

2.3. Panathinaikos

On 30 July 2013, Karelis signed a three-year contract with Panathinaikos, with Amkar Perm retaining a 20% sell-on clause for any future transfer. He made his Panathinaikos debut on 18 August 2013 in a 2-0 home victory against Panetolikos. His first two goals for the club came on 24 November 2013, contributing to a 3-1 home win against PAS Giannena. On 26 April 2014, he scored the third goal in a 4-1 win against PAOK in the Greek Cup final, securing the first trophy of his career.

On 15 February 2015, he scored two goals in a match against OFI Crete, helping Panathinaikos to a 3-2 away win. Following these performances, Nikos Karelis signed a contract extension on increased terms with Panathinaikos, committing him to the club until the summer of 2018. By May 2015, after scoring 16 goals across all competitions (13 in the Super League, 2 in the Europa League, and 1 in the Greek Cup) prior to the Super League playoffs, Karelis attracted interest from several European clubs, including Torino and Werder Bremen. On 31 May 2015, Panathinaikos reportedly rejected a bid for Karelis from Lille. During the summer 2015 transfer window, clubs like Anderlecht and Getafe CF were also linked with potential moves for the player.

On 28 July 2015, Karelis scored a penalty that clinched a 2-1 win for Panathinaikos against Club Brugge in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round. He began the 2015-16 season by scoring in a 2-1 away win against Panetolikos. By 28 October 2015, despite a dip in his productivity, Genk expressed continued interest in Karelis for the upcoming transfer window, having previously had two bids rejected by Panathinaikos. He left Panathinaikos as the leading scorer of the first half of the 2015-16 season with 9 goals and 5 assists.

2.4. Genk

On 12 January 2016, Karelis signed a 3.5-year contract with Genk, with Panathinaikos retaining a 16% sell-on clause for any future transfer. He made an immediate impact, debuting for the club on 15 January 2016 in a home match against Waregem. Coming on as a 77th-minute substitute for Alejandro Pozuelo, he scored the winning goal in the 88th minute, securing a 2-1 victory for Genk's ten men. On 3 February 2016, he scored in a 1-1 draw against Standard Liège in the Belgian Cup, though the result was not enough to advance them to the next round. On 13 February 2016, Karelis scored a brace in a dominant 6-1 win against Waasland-Beveren. He opened the scoring with a penalty kick on 28 February 2016 in a 3-2 home win against Club Brugge. On 5 March 2016, he again opened the scoring, assisted by Alejandro Pozuelo, in a 2-1 away loss against Standard Liège.

On 1 May 2016, he scored the only goal as a substitute in a 3-1 away loss against Club Brugge. In the last home game of the season, he scored the final goal as a substitute in a 5-2 victory against rivals Anderlecht during the playoffs. On 29 May 2016, in the final game of the Play-offs Finals against Charleroi, he scored his first hat-trick of the season, helping his club secure qualification for the upcoming UEFA Europa League season and reaching 10 goals in his first season in the Belgian Pro League.

In his first match of the 2016-17 season, Karelis opened the scoring in a 2-1 home win against Oostende on 31 July 2016. On 21 September 2016, he impressively scored four goals in his team's 4-0 away victory against Aalst in the Belgian Cup. He scored his first international goal of the season on 29 September 2016, opening the scoring in a 3-1 home Europa League Group stage match against Italian club Sassuolo. On 2 October 2016, he equalized with a penalty kick in a 2-1 home win against KV Mechelen. On 15 October 2016, he netted both goals against Mouscron, helping his club secure a valuable 2-2 away draw. On 23 October 2016, he scored the only goal, leading his club to a valuable 1-0 win against Sint-Truidense in the Belgian Pro League. On 26 October 2016, he scored his seventh goal of the season against Charleroi, opening the scoring in a 2-1 away loss. On 29 October 2016, he scored his second goal in a 2-1 home game against Westerlo, extending his scoring run to a record of 5 consecutive matches and becoming the league's top goalscorer at that point. On 24 November 2016, in a UEFA Europa League group stage home match against Rapid Wien, he scored Genk's early winner from close range after Leon Bailey's header hit the bar, earning him the MVP title for the match.

On 14 December 2016, he scored three goals in an overtime win against Charleroi, helping Genk advance to the semifinals of the Belgian Cup. However, on 27 December 2016, during a 2-0 home win against Gent, Karelis suffered a severe cruciate ligament rupture (ACL) at the very beginning of the second half. The injury occurred without a foul or challenge, as he fell hard on his left knee while dribbling. This injury was projected to keep him out of the team for at least 8 months.

After a difficult recovery process lasting 290 days, Karelis returned to the pitch on 19 October 2017, playing 45 minutes with Genk's second team in a friendly match against Lokeren. A week later, he made his return to the first team as a substitute in a 0-0 away game against Kortrijk. On 17 December 2017, in his seventh appearance since the injury, he scored a header, helping his club secure a vital 1-1 away draw against rivals Charleroi. On 9 February 2018, having struggled for goals since his return from the serious injury, the 25-year-old managed to score his second goal of the 2017-18 season in a 3-1 win against Zulte Waregem. He capitalized on a poor error to go clean through on goal, saving his first effort to steer the rebound into the unguarded net. Karelis also registered an assist for Genk's second goal in that match. On 17 February 2018, Karelis scored his third goal of the season for Genk, contributing to an entertaining 2-2 draw against Club Brugge in the Jupiler League, though he later missed a penalty in the second half. He scored for the third consecutive game on 23 February 2018, assisted by Joakim Mæhle, in a 4-0 home win against Antwerp.

2.5. Brentford

On 22 August 2019, as a free agent, Karelis signed for English Championship side Brentford, initially on a one-year deal with an option for another year. However, in October 2019, he suffered another serious knee injury. He was subsequently released at the end of the season, following a difficult 194-day recovery process from his ruptured ACL injury.

2.6. ADO Den Haag

On 8 October 2020, ADO Den Haag of the Dutch Eredivisie announced the signing of Nikos Karelis on a free transfer. The 28-year-old striker signed a one-year contract, with an option for an additional season. He had been without a club since his contract with Brentford was not renewed in the summer of 2020.

2.7. Panetolikos

On 30 January 2021, Karelis returned to the Super League Greece, signing a contract with Panetolikos until the summer of 2022 on a free transfer. On 17 October 2021, he scored his first goal for the club with a header, opening the scoring in a frustrating 2-1 home loss against rivals OFI. This marked his first goal in almost 26 months. On 18 December 2021, he came on as a substitute to score the winning goal against Atromitos, helping his club secure a vital 2-1 home win in their effort to avoid relegation.

On 16 January 2022, along with his teammate Javier Mendoza, Karelis was a main protagonist, contributing one goal and one assist each in a triumphant 2-1 away win against AEK Athens. A week later, on 22 January, he scored again after Javier Mendoza's assist in a new away 4-2 win against OFI. Between these two league games, on 19 January 2022, he scored against champions Olympiakos in the Greek Cup, giving Panetolikos a 2-1 lead for eventual qualification to the next round. On 6 March 2022, he opened the scoring in a vital 2-1 Super League away win against Ionikos. On 1 July 2022, Karelis signed a two-year contract renewal with Panetolikos.

2.8. Mumbai City

On 11 July 2024, Karelis joined Indian Super League club Mumbai City on a one-year contract, valid until the end of the 2024-25 season. He made his debut for the club in the first match of the season on 13 September 2024, starting against Mohun Bagan SG. In this match, he provided an assist, as the ball hit him before Tiri scored Mumbai's first goal in a match that eventually ended in a 2-2 draw, secured by a late goal from defender Thaer Krouma.

Karelis scored his first goal for Mumbai City in his second league appearance on 21 September 2024, against Jamshedpur FC, with a long-range shot into the top corner. However, this goal came in a losing effort as Mumbai went on to lose the match 3-2. Following a goalless game against Bengaluru FC, Karelis scored his second goal of the season away against FC Goa on 1 October 2024, with a diving header from a Yoëll van Nieff free kick, which was the opening goal in a 2-1 victory for Mumbai. He scored again in the next match on 20 October 2024, netting the equalizer at home against Odisha FC with a close-range finish in an eventual 1-1 draw. Karelis continued his scoring streak in the subsequent match, bagging a brace in a 4-2 home win against Kerala Blasters FC on 3 November 2024. His first goal was another close-range finish following a cross from Lallianzuala Chhangte, and his second was a penalty awarded after a handball in the box.

After a five-match goalless streak, Karelis found the net again at home against Chennaiyin FC on 21 November 2024, scoring a composed one-on-one finish into the bottom corner in the eighth minute. This goal proved to be the match-winner in a 1-0 victory for The Islanders. On 6 January 2025, Karelis secured his second brace of the season, this time in an away fixture against East Bengal FC. His first goal came from a rebound in the 44th minute after his initial shot was saved by goalkeeper Prabhsukhan Gill. His second goal in the 87th minute, following a long pass from Nathan Rodrigues that was not intercepted by defender Hijazi Maher, secured Mumbai a 3-2 victory.

3.1. International goals

Scores and results list Greece's goal tally first.

4.1. Club

4.2. International