Arsenal came from behind to beat Chelsea 2-1 in a thrilling London battle on Sunday and Christos Tzolis' performance didn't go unnoticed.
The Blues took a shock lead in just the second minute when Morgan Rogers proved just why Mikel Arteta wanted to sign him. The English attacker buried the ball past David Raya and mimicked Thierry Henry's famous corner flag celebration.
Arteta's men responded well and came up with a deserved equaliser in the 25th minute. Kai Havertz caught Emiliano Martinez off guard with a low-driven strike that the Argentine goalkeeper arguably should have saved.
Martin Odegaard's superb start to the season continued when he latched onto a beautiful pass from Tzolis and smashed home in the 50th minute. That proved to be the winner and the champions made it three wins from three at the start of the new campaign.
Tzolis Catches The Eye in Arsenal 2-1 Chelsea
Tzolis came in for criticism following Arsenal's 1-0 win over Aston Villa on Monday night. He didn't get much joy up against Matty Cash but that certainly wasn't the case today.
The Greek winger often put in a fantastic shift on the left wing, giving Xabi Alonso's defence problems. He made four key passes, found his man with one of his two attempted crosses and won five of his six ground duels.
Odegaard took the Man of the Match award as his fine form continued, but Tzolis also played a crucial role in the Gunners' victory. The 24-year-old arrived from Belgian Pro League side Club Brugge for £34 million earlier this summer and has claimed a starting berth in Arteta's team.
Arsenal Fans Thrilled With Tzolis
Tzolis looked likely to be joined by a marquee attacking signing to compete with for the left-wing berth. That didn't happen though as Arsenal failed to convince Vinicius Junior to move to the Emirates and the Brazilian instead signed a new long-term deal with Real Madrid.
Rogers had been at the top of Arteta's shortlist at the start of the summer but the North Londoners weren't prepared to pay the £117m asking price. He instead headed to Stamford Bridge where he has made a red-hot start to life in west London.
Tzolis though is proving to be an excellent addition to Arteta's squad and he won fans over with his showing today. One fan wrote on X:
"Tzolis’ decision making in the final 3rd is some of the very best I’ve seen. And it’s exactly what we’ve cried out for at times on that side."
Another fan admires his passing abilities:
"Tzolis man, these passes are so elite, I’ll never bad mouth this guys combination play."
One alluded to the negativity that came after the Villa game:
"Tzolis deserves his flowers today but the TL made up their mind about him already."
Another supporter talked up Tzolis' persistance:
"Fantastic assist by Tzolis too, he's got that in him every time. Always a threat."
One simply wrote:
"Christos Tzolis is a demon."
Another added:
"First time watching Tzolis. There is a gem here."
Tzolis could prove to be a bargain buy for Arsenal given how much money has been spent on wingers by Premier League clubs. Liverpool forked out over £100m for Bradley Barcola while Tottenham Hotspur paid Manchester City £85m for Savio.
The Greece international now sits on three assists in four games across competitions. He is set to taste Champions League football with his new club for the first time in this Wednesday's meeting with Napoli.
