Christos Tzolis: It’s Tzol Good

[Trilly]

It’s just that any post i see of yours about him is always being critical or back handed, you even admitted to being nit picky about him.

It looks like since you never wanted him and preferred Rogers or Barcola you already have an agenda. I don’t think you’d be this critical of those two if we signed them instead.

Never preferred Rogers so you’re already capping. As much as I wanted Barcola I was critical of him during the World Cup for being too passive but ofc you wouldn’t notice that as it doesn’t suit your agenda.

Tzolis is the most interesting new signing to me, he’s also the one with the most question marks/spotlight. I’m assessing the guy’s game from scratch so yes there’s going to be praise and there’s also going to be critique.

I can also almost guarantee you that if he doesn’t address the things I’ve spotted at this (admittedly very early) stage then people will start grumbling about it in a few months. And they’re not going to pull their punches.

Exact same thing happened on here with Gyok and Zubi last season. Especially Zubi where I started noticing things in December then by April everyone hated him

 

[El Duderino]

Why are you so protective of Trilly he can handle himself lmao

You're the one who quoted me lmao? I was just joking with him.

 

[MikelHadADream]

You can see he’s a really solid player, but he’s pretty average physically. No real pace or 1v1 ability.

I like that he acknowledges this though and doesn’t dwell on the ball (which Trossard did sometimes). Just gets it, makes a good pass or cross. Really efficient.

 

[Yousif Arsenal]

You can see he’s a really solid player, but he’s pretty average physically. No real pace or 1v1 ability.

I like that he acknowledges this though and doesn’t dwell on the ball (which Trossard did sometimes). Just gets it, makes a good pass or cross. Really efficient.

Yeah he very excellent in box trossard is similar but he had more tricks when he dribble

 

[Jakarta]

It’s really not, don’t start being silly now.

What I’m saying about Tzolis now is exactly what I said about a young Saka on this forum when his standout attribute was his decision making. Since then he’s added excellent crossing, decent finishing and good 1v1 dribbling to his game. I’ve been calling him world class ever since.

At the top level all of these forwards have solid decision making + other special attributes. Essentially what Tzolis has/is showing is the base of a top player. You’re going to need more than that to actually be a top player.

Call it passive aggressive all you want, it’s facts.

I’m really pleasantly surprised with Tzolis. His decision making and football intelligence is top notch.

However, looking at Arteta’s tactics and Tzolis limitations I don’t think he will get anywhere near the kind of output he had in Belgium. Arteta for one i hope doesn’t violate and try to make Tzolis hug the touch line similar to Martinelli. To score more goals Tzolis needs to be in and around the box more centrally, he doesn’t have that dribbling ability and pace to carry the ball far out wide or from deep and dribble his way into the box.

If Arteta plays him as a left forward who takes up central positions than I can see him easily getting 10 goals + 10 assists in the Prem. However, if he plays as a touchline winger then I don’t expect much goal output from him…..

 

[Amsterdam Gooner 88]

I've seen enough. Give him the Ballon d'Or. All jokes aside. I like Tzolis. Brings a lot of directness and end product to our game. Looking like a very smart buy so far.

 

[Amsterdam Gooner 88]

Never preferred Rogers so you’re already capping. As much as I wanted Barcola I was critical of him during the World Cup for being too passive but ofc you wouldn’t notice that as it doesn’t suit your agenda.

Tzolis is the most interesting new signing to me, he’s also the one with the most question marks/spotlight. I’m assessing the guy’s game from scratch so yes there’s going to be praise and there’s also going to be critique.

I can also almost guarantee you that if he doesn’t address the things I’ve spotted at this (admittedly very early) stage then people will start grumbling about it in a few months. And they’re not going to pull their punches.

Exact same thing happened on here with Gyok and Zubi last season. Especially Zubi where I started noticing things in December then by April everyone hated him

FFS. First time i log on here in over a week and first post i see is you going at it again with SmallPipiPump. You have more patience than me arguing with him everytime. Don't know if I should say respect or if i should shake my head

 

[BigPoppaPump]

FFS. First time i log on here in over a week and first post i see is you going at it again with SmallPipiPump. You have more patience than me arguing with him everytime. Don't know if I should say respect or if i should shake my head

It’s funny how many random people on this forum hate me just for defending our players. Like my bad I don’t want to kill Madueke.

 

[BigPoppaPump]

I can also almost guarantee you that if he doesn’t address the things I’ve spotted at this (admittedly very early) stage then people will start grumbling about it in a few months. And they’re not going to pull their punches.

That’s not really a fair metric cos people are always hating on our players even when we’re the second best team in Europe. It’s never honest or impartial.

All Im saying is it does seem like you’re on his case and if people are calling you out for hating on him then surely there’s no smoke without fire mate.

 

[Amsterdam Gooner 88]

It’s funny how many random people on this forum hate me just for defending our players. Like my bad I don’t want to kill Madueke.

No mate. It's not because you are always the one defending Madueke. It's because you are always making assumptions, trying to frame people by saying that they said things that they didn't and because you are a hypocrite. You critize other players but for some reason your lovechild Madueke is untouchable. Would have respected it a lot more if you never critized any players.

 

[BigPoppaPump]

No mate. It's not because you are always the one defending Madueke. It's because you are always making assumptions, trying to frame people by saying that they said things that they didn't and because you are a hypocrite. You critize other players but for some reason your lovechild Madueke is untouchable. Would have respected it a lot more if you never critized any players.

Not really, it’s just that you guys follow narratives and don’t think for yourself then get mad at me calling it out.

 

[Amsterdam Gooner 88]

Not really, it’s just that you guys follow narratives and don’t think for yourself then get mad at me calling it out.

Kinda proving my point G. Stop acting like you are some crusador of righteouness lmao

 

[Trilly]

I’m really pleasantly surprised with Tzolis. His decision making and football intelligence is top notch.

However, looking at Arteta’s tactics and Tzolis limitations I don’t think he will get anywhere near the kind of output he had in Belgium. Arteta for one i hope doesn’t violate and try to make Tzolis hug the touch line similar to Martinelli. To score more goals Tzolis needs to be in and around the box more centrally, he doesn’t have that dribbling ability and pace to carry the ball far out wide or from deep and dribble his way into the box.

If Arteta plays him as a left forward who takes up central positions than I can see him easily getting 10 goals + 10 assists in the Prem. However, if he plays as a touchline winger then I don’t expect much goal output from him…..

Will be interesting to see. I see him as someone who will always have a reliable final action whether that’s a pass or a shot.

Regardless of league difficulty anybody who racks up GA tends to have solid decision making and ball striking. Arteta doesn’t really seem to want his wingers central but we have seen Tzolis drifting all the way to RW so maybe it’ll be different.

On paper 10 goals 10 assists doesn’t sound unreasonable but then you look at the list of 20 GA players in the league and it lets you know that it’s far from easy.

 

[ash_rasul]

Yeah he very excellent in box trossard is similar but he had more tricks when he dribble

Tzolis never really had to rely on tricks in the Belgian league due to the quality of opposition. He could almost do as he pleased simply through clean, efficient and decisive final action.

Clearly he realised he will need a little more variation to survive in the PL as I noticed a couple of stepovers/feints to create a yard of space against Chelsea. I feel like this is an area of his game that we will see more of as he continues to evolve and adapt.

There was something to be said about the way he executed his assist to Ødegaard (via Havertz). It was a basic pass at first glance, but the way he constructed it under pressure was with a level of conviction that we rarely see from our attackers. He knew exactly where it needed to go and he knew he would get it there.

 

[Uncle Macho]

Anybody else that doesn’t have a strong opinion on this guy yet or are we forced to pick a side soon?

He was better than Saka yesterday, but that’s all I’ve got. Otherwise I’m indifferent about what I’ve seen to date.

 

[El Duderino]

Anybody else that doesn’t have a strong opinion on this guy yet or are we forced to pick a side soon?

He was better than Saka yesterday, but that’s all I’ve got. Otherwise I’m indifferent about what I’ve seen to date.

He'll be a more consistent trossard, imo.

Might not have Leo's highs, but won't have his very low periods.

 

[Fallout]

I rate him very highly

His ability to play entry passes / crosses into dangerous areas seems to be a super power and I haven't seen a winger in our team do this as consistently as him (so far)

His assist yesterday was carbon copy of the community shield assist to Ødegaard, so that's twice now that he's found that same pass leading to a goal

And he is consistent with various types of clever short combinations, and can deliver good crosses with both feet

He's very average at beating a man 1v1 but good enough, and if he improves on that skill he genuinely becomes a world class player

 

[Legend14]

Have you ever said something outright positive about the team this summer?

Yes. Don’t be lazy. Do your research before you post.

 

[Uncle Macho]

He'll be a more consistent trossard, imo.

Might not have Leo's highs, but won't have his very low periods.

Leo I think we just signed a bit later than we ideally should have. Have always liked him and I believe his lows particularly last season were due to personal issues. He still put that aside and tried his best.

I feel like people are in a rush to categorise Tzolis as good/bad/wc/whatever but there isn’t really much to go on in my opinion.

 

[Rasmi]

Leo I think we just signed a bit later than we ideally should have. Have always liked him and I believe his lows particularly last season were due to personal issues. He still put that aside and tried his best.

I feel like people are in a rush to categorise Tzolis as good/bad/wc/whatever but there isn’t really much to go on in my opinion.

Leo became more consistent at Arsenal. At Brighton he was very inconsistent tbh. His levels always varies far too much to ever be top player