NOTE: Rocket rise. The millionaire boy is finally starting to pay Slavia – Sport.cz

Zafeiris’ tenure at Slavia was sinusoid-shaped during this period. When it arrived, fans and pundits alike were delighted.

Fine ball technique, dribbling in a small space, innovative solutions to situations. And in addition, a large radius of action. How many players with these strengths are running in the Czech Republic? After all, the first goal for Slavia was a complete terno, scored by Zafeiris in Mladá Boleslav in April 2023. He hit Oscar with his heel, turned several opponents into spectators unmoved, he entered from the left touchline directly in front of the goal and cleared the ball into the net twice.

“Here are the ten of us! Novy Stanciu,” the celebrants cheered at the time. Perhaps the management is already eagerly awaiting offers from more prestigious competitions and interest from Europe’s top leagues.

But last year there was a gradual decline in performance. Zafeiris’ star was fading, and when health issues were added to that, a spring role as backup came into being. The young midfielder showed maximum effort with limited playing time. And sometimes frustration, because he didn’t stick to it.

Fast forward a few months. Zafeiris is an aid. It perfectly complements the light-footed Oscar. At times the two seem to pass for a three-man midfield. Zafeiris continues to add superstructure in the form of goals. Often the left hand is beautiful and weaker. What he did, for example, in Sunday’s derby with Sparta (2:1), his left-footed bomb from outside the box was the eventual winning goal.

“It works on its own. We have talked about shooting with him in the past. Recently, he has developed rapidly, he also has a much better movement,” coach Jindřich Trpišovský suggested.

The Zafeiris performance graph (as well as its price tag) is once again flying inexorably upwards. He dominated the Champions League second leg against Lille, where he scored, but unfortunately for the Stitched, the goal build got the better of him twice. He appears more dynamic, calmer, more skilled. A better class than a few months ago.

Slavia would be happy to pay forty million again for this fighter. Although he feels from the club that selling stars is no longer necessary. But the management knows very well that when there are informative questions from interested parties, for the current version of the Greek midfielder, he can easily ask for the purchase price many times over.

Because this Zafeiris was worth the investment.