Christos Tzolis provided two assists as Arsenal defeated Manchester City 3-0 to win the Community Shield at Principality Stadium, showcasing the quality that has led the club to invest £34 million in the signing of the winger from Club Brugge.
The Greek international has been one of Arsenal's best performers in pre-season. His headed assist for Kai Havertz was perfectly weighted, whilst his pass for Martin Odegaard's goal came after a quick dribble. Tzolis became the first player to assist two goals in a Community Shield since David Beckham in 1996.
Tzolis's path, aged 24, to the highest level has not always been straightforward. During three years at Norwich he scored just three times in 30 appearances between 2021 and 2024. However, after excelling on loan at German side Fortuna Düsseldorf in the 2023-24 season, where he scored 24 goals in 35 matches, he joined Club Brugge and became one of the big figures in the Belgian league.
In his best professional season, Tzolis was involved in 40 goals—17 scored and 23 assists—when Club Brugge were crowned champions of Belgium. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta indicated he has noticed similarities between the forward and Leandro Trossard, who moved to Besiktaş in July. "He's coming into the team very naturally," said Arteta. "He's a very intelligent guy and he has enormous quality. When he's in the final 20 or 30 metres he's very calm to pick his teammates".
Last season in the Champions League, Tzolis scored against Atalanta and Atlético Madrid, and registered an assist against Barcelona. In the 2025-26 Belgian Pro League season, he created 135 chances, of which 52 came from set plays. Arteta added that the winger is "a very consistent player in everything he does" and that the Greek's numbers can improve further with higher quality teammates around him.
