Due to his short stature and agility, Koutsianikoulis demonstrated an impressive ability to evade opposing tackles and beat the defensive line on attacking runs, while his finishing and precise passing to create scoring opportunities for his teammates led the Greek media to dub him "the Greek Messi" or "Messi for the poor",[2] often drawing comparisons between his and the Argentinian super-star's playing style, though Koutsianikoulis himself requested these nicknames and comparisons to be dropped.
[2] Despite eventually not making any international caps, Koutsianikoulis' league performances with Ergotelis (he finished the season with 4 goals and 6 assists in 27 games) and rising popularity among Greek fans and press made him a target for all major clubs in Greece.
[3] Despite high hopes placed on Koutsianikoulis' development, and a dream debut in the 2009–10 Superleague opening match vs. Levadiakos, where he scored one goal and delivered two assists in an easy 3−0 home win for his club,[7] his eventual performances did not manage to impress PAOK coach Fernando Santos, who benched him for the majority of games in the 2009–10 season, while fans were frustrated and left to expect more from the "Greek Messi".
[9] Reports had linked Koutsianikoulis with both AEK and OFI in the weeks after his release from Ergotelis and it seemed the Athenian club had convinced the Greek youth international to join, despite their well-documented financial troubles.
[12] In a symbolic gesture, Koutsianikoulis, along with the other 14 players who still comprised the club's roster at the time walked on the pitch of the Theodoros Vardinogiannis Stadium on that day (before match-day 29) and waived OFI's fans farewell.
[16] He made 23 appearances for AEL and scored one goal during the 2015−16 Football League season, helping his club win the division title and achieve instant promotion to the Superleague.
[21] On 31 March 2018, he scored with a wonderful strike, curling the ball into the net from distance with the help of a slight deflection, as his club made another huge step towards promotion to the Superleague, defeating 3-0 nearest challengers Panachaiki.
Koutsianikoulis' skills during his time with Iraklis Chalki, drew the attention of Greek U−19 coach Nikos Nioplias, who enlisted him in the squad that featured in the 2007 UEFA European U−19 Championship, in which Greece reached the Final.
His performances were eventually rewarded by Greece head coach Otto Rehhagel, who named Koutsianikoulis in his 20-man squad for an international friendly against Italy on 19 May 2008 at Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus.
[25] Despite being considered a strong prospect for the national team, Koutsianikoulis was ultimately not fielded during the match, and the eventual decline of his career after his transfer move to PAOK severely hurt his chances for receiving another call-up.