 Born in Florina, Solakis began his professional career with Veria and played for the club in the Alpha Ethniki during the 1996–97 and 1997–98 seasons.He played in the Alpha Ethniki again with Panachaiki during the 1999–2000 and 2000–01 seasons.On summer of 2001 he moved to APOEL where he helped the club to win the Cypriot First Division 2001-02 by scoring 15 goals in 26 appearances.