Arsenal handed fresh injury headache as Christos Tzolis limps off for Greece after ignoring manager’s substitution order

Tzolis lasted just 18 minutes of Greece's 2-2 Nations League draw against the Netherlands in Thessaloniki on Thursday evening. The attacker went down clutching his leg and required immediate medical attention on the pitch, visibly distressed and covering his face with his shirt.

Despite the worrying initial signs, the Arsenal man appeared to move relatively freely following treatment from the physios. Believing the issue was minor, the winger was seemingly eager to continue, setting up a bizarre standoff with his national team manager.

Greece head coach Ivan Jovanovic revealed that he immediately moved to withdraw his player as a precaution, only for his instructions to be rejected. Speaking to Sport24, the manager detailed the unusual touchline exchange.

"How can I handle it, you tell me," Jovanovic explained. "I’m his coach, I tell him to come out and he says, 'I’m not coming out'. I think it was a scene that everyone saw, those who were nearby. I told him to get out, because I suspected that he wouldn’t have done that if he hadn’t felt something."

The manager stressed his priority was safeguarding the attacker's health in a non-qualifying fixture, noting he acted strictly on expert advice.

"A coach’s decisions regarding substitutions and the suspected injury of a player, he does not make decisions without a medical opinion. We have doctors, and very good ones at that," Jovanovic added. "So when a doctor considers that this thing, as he and Christos understand it, is something that is not for the player to continue playing.

"Certainly first as a coach I have to take the decision to replace the player, because it was a muscular issue. When it’s muscular issues, that, along with the doctors, with the immediate information I have, was the reason I asked for it to come out immediately."

Tzolis eventually relented, opting to drop back and defend a corner before finally making his way to the dugout. Jovanovic remains optimistic about the severity of the problem, stating: "We don’t know how much damage was done today, but I hoped it was just a twitch, something temporary."

The incident compounds a frustrating international break for Arteta's squad. Kai Havertz also picked up a knock against the Netherlands, adding to the medical department's workload in north London.

Meanwhile, club captain Martin Odegaard was on the receiving end of a heavy challenge from Bernardo Silva during a clash with Portugal. Fortunately for the Gunners, the Norwegian playmaker shook off the tackle and was passed fit to feature against Norway on Thursday night.

Tzolis is expected to miss Greece's upcoming Nations League test against Germany this weekend. The winger will likely undergo further assessment to determine the full extent of his muscular damage.

Arsenal will be hoping for positive news as they prepare for the resumption of domestic football. With a congested fixture list looming, Arteta can ill afford to lose key personnel to lengthy spells in the treatment room.