The Brighton and Arsenal stars leading a Greek football revolution

The Greek side that won Euro 2004 deserve many superlatives for an achievement that shocked a continent. Look around Europe a generation on and you will see that another Greek football revolution is in full swing.

And this one looks a lot more fun. It is led by Brighton's teenage sensation, Charalampos Kostoulas, and Arsenal's former Norwich City outcast, Christos Tzolis.

Going into the first international window of 2026-27, Kostoulas had scored four goals in eight matches so far this season and two from two in the Premier League for a Seagulls' side soaring high in third place. Now, two matches into the Nations League, they have helped the country to back-to-back away wins against Serbia and Jurgen Klopp's Germany.

Greece now sit on top of their group and can now look forward to successive home matches against the Netherlands and Klopp's men. Little wonder that the mood in the country is as bouyant as its been in 22 years.

"They're two players who reflect the way that the Greek side are now playing," says Nikos Dabizas, the former defender who spent seven years in English football with Newcastle and then Leicester City. "In the past, you would say that Greece's strength was their defending, they were hard to beat, didn't concede many goals but didn't score many either.

"Now these guys, along with [Konstantinos] Karetsas at Dortmund, [Vangelis] Pavlidis at Benfica and [Stefanos] Tzimas, another kid at Brighton who came through the system at PAOK - there's quality everywhere." Kostoulas is viewed as an emblematic figure in this new age for Greek football, although his roots can be found in the foundations that were laid for the 2004 triumph. His father, Athanasios Kostoulas, played alongside Stelios Giannakopoulos during his time at Olympiakos.

He also played alongside both Giannakopoulos - a member of that European Championship winning side 22 years ago - and Dabizas for the Greek national team. "His brother [Konstantinos Kostoulas] plays in the same position for Crete.

"When it comes down to it, everybody can see the way you played your football, and say you were a good player. "But for me, football is all about character.

This is what counts more for me.