Arsenal fans have given their early thoughts on new signing Christos Tzolis after watching him make his debut in a pre-season win vs Girona.

The Greek winger was signed from Club Brugge to replace Leandro Trossard and add depth on the left-hand side of the attack. Mikel Arteta’s men secured a 4-1 win over their Spanish opposition, with Kai Havertz, Max Dowman and Gabriel Jesus all on the scoresheet.

Tzolis even managed to get in on the act, as his curling effort deflected into the net in the first-half. But what did Gunners fans make of his overall performance? Well, they’ve made their feelings very clear online.

Arsenal Fans Give Opinions on Christos Tzolis’ Debut

The north Londoners were dominant throughout, and Tzolis made a strong impression on the left wing. He managed two shots, with one blocked and the other going in.

The 24-year-old also completed two out of three attempted crosses and found a teammate with 19 of his 23 pass attempts. Despite losing the ball six times, Tzolis made the most of his 31 touches in just over an hour of football.

Supporters were happy with what they saw, with many taking to X (formerly Twitter) to express their strong opinions. One said: “Tzolis stocks are going to fly,” while another claimed: “Hmm this Tzolis guy is going to be a problem.”

“Tzolis IQ is top. Gonna be a class player for us,” was the conclusion of one happy Gunner. His dribbling ability was brought up as another fan added: “These Tzolis 1v1’s… they tried saying my boy lacks burst of pace and has no tech; you’re simply uneducated.”

Vinicius Junior appears to be Arsenal’s dream signing, but one supporter suggested, perhaps in a tongue-in-cheek manner, that the Brazilian is now not needed: “Tzolis asking uncomfortable questions about whether Vini is needed.”

Watch Tzolis’ highlights in Girona vs Arsenal below

There’s still a long way to go for Tzolis to prove he can be a regular starter for Arteta. But he did make a strong case to be a like-for-like replacement for Trossard. In fact, his solid display, with a goal on top, was remarkably similar to the performances the Belgian regularly produced for the Premier League giants.

Statistics in this article are courtesy of SofaScore. Correct as of 01-08-26.

In his prime, there were few more frightening strikers on the planet than Romario. His most iconic moment came at the 1994 World Cup, as he scored five goals on his way to lifting the trophy with Brazil.

That was enough to see the forward named the best player of the tournament, and cemented his status as an all-time great. Beyond that, his career delivered two Copa America triumphs, and he also won silverware with Vasco da Gama, PSV Eindhoven, Barcelona, and Flamengo.

It’s said that Romario actually scored over 1000 times in his career, although FIFA only recognises 760 of his goals in official matches between clubs, the senior national team and the Olympic side. Regardless, he was prolific in his day, with very few defenders able to stop him.

However, there is one man who caused the Brazilian real problems.

Romario Praises ‘Incredible’ Italian Defender

Romario is certainly not shy when it comes to talking about his great qualities. After all, when listing his greatest six footballers of all time, he happily ranked himself alongside the best, remarking: “I consider myself one of the five greatest players of all time. Pele, [Diego] Maradona, [Lionel] Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, me and Ronaldo. That’s it. I’d give myself an 11 out of 10 as a player.”

With that in mind, it’s interesting to note that one former defender sparked true humility from the iconic Brazilian. Indeed, Romario named Italian legend Franco Baresi as the ‘toughest player’ he ever faced in his career.

Speaking after the defender’s tragic passing in July 2026, aged just 66, Romario expressed his grief with an emotional tribute on social media. He said:

Baresi will be remembered as one of the greatest defenders of all time, with Romario’s comments capturing just how highly thought of he was in the game. The Italian may have lost the 1994 final to Brazil, but had already won the World Cup in 1982.

On top of that success with his country, he remains one of the greatest one-club players in football history, spending his entire career with AC Milan. At the San Siro, he won six Serie A titles, three Champions League trophies and even finished runner-up for the Ballon d’Or award at one point during his illustrious career.

After his death, Milan spoke of his importance to their club. An emotional statement read: “The entire history of AC Milan is in tears following the passing of Franco Baresi. His example and integrity will be forever etched into the Club’s DNA, just as his iconic number 6 shirt is. The condolences AC Milan extends to Franco Baresi’s family at such a difficult time are shared by every Rossonero, who feels this loss as their own.”

He truly was a legend of the sport.

Cristiano Ronaldo once revealed an English footballer is one of his son Mateo’s three favourite players to watch.

The legendary forward was a childhood idol for many of the current generation who are making names for themselves in the sport. Vinicius Junior idolised the former Real Madrid star during his childhood before eventually following in the five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s footsteps and lighting up the Estadio Bernabeu.

As Ronaldo, 41, heads towards the end of his illustrious playing career, he is now seeing today’s European megastars earn similar admiration. Three of them have been mainstays in his son Mateo’s YouTube history.

Ronaldo Reveals Mateo Watches Trio

REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo

Ronaldo is one of the most successful players in history, having become the greatest goalscorer the sport has ever seen. His peak came at Real Madrid, where he won four UEFA Champions League trophies, adding to the first he won at Manchester United.

The Portuguese star scored 450 goals in 438 games for Los Blancos, writing his name in the club’s history books. While he didn’t enjoy the most ceremonious of departures, he is recognised as one of, if not the best, players to grace the Bernabeu.

Ronaldo is training his son Mateo, who at the age of nine plays at Al-Nassr’s academy. Despite seeing his father play for the Saudi Pro League giants, there are three players whom he is particularly fond of.

“My son Mateo watches YouTube comps of Mbappe, Bellingham and Camavinga. and he’ll tell me, ‘Mbappe is better than you.’ I tell him, ‘But I’ve scored more goals.’ Then I’ll remind him Mbappe missed a penalty… and he’ll reply, ‘You missed one too.’”

While the biggest takeaway is Mateo’s view on Kylian Mbappe being better than Ronaldo, his interest in Jude Bellingham will have England fans taking notice. The Birmingham-born midfielder has enjoyed a meteoric rise and grown into one of football’s biggest superstars.

It speaks volumes of Bellingham’s status in world football and the influence he has on the younger generation. Still only 23, he has won the UEFA Champions League and La Liga title since joining Madrid from Borussia Dortmund in July 2023.

Bellingham headed to this summer’s World Cup with some urging Thomas Tuchel to start Morgan Rogers over him. He did his talking on the pitch, scoring seven goals to break Harry Kane and Gary Lineker’s record for the most goals scored by an Englishman at any major tournament.

Ronaldo Compared Bellingham to Real Madrid Great

Reuters/Maria Lysaker

Mateo isn’t the only member of the Ronaldo family who is a Bellingham fan, as the Madrid icon made his feelings clear back in February 2025. He waxed lyrical about the Englishman during an interview with El Chiringuito:

“I really like Jude Bellingham. He reminds me of Zidane. He is still very young and has his whole future ahead of him. He will bring a lot to Real Madrid.”

REUTERS/Kacper Pempel

Bellingham made a red-hot start to life at Madrid, living up to the hype with 23 goals and 13 assists in 42 games during his debut season. Just months into his Bernabeu career, he broke Ronaldo’s joint record of most goals scored by a Los Blancos player in their first 15 games when he found the net for the 14th time.

Comparisons with Zinedine Zidane are understandable given Bellingham took the number five shirt the iconic Frenchman made famous. He now finds himself winning the hearts of young fans as Ronaldo and Zidane did throughout their careers.