The ink may not be dry on Greek defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos’ new deal with Arsenal, but it looks like Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Co. have already given the 30-year-old a nickname.
While it’s customary to welcome new teammates on social media these days, the Armenian midfielder has taken it a step further with a short video posted on his Instagram handle:
Welcome, #spartakus ! 😉😄💪🏼 @sokratispapa.official #gunner @arsenal
A post shared by Henrikh Mkhitaryan (@micki_taryan) on
Spartacus of course, was the legendary Greek gladiator who lead a armed rebellion against the mighty Roman Empire.
Countless books, films and tv shows have immortalised the Thracian but Arsenal fans will hope that Sokratis makes a lasting impression during his stay in North London.
With Per Mertesacker retiring and taking up a role as the head of the club’s academy, the notoriously-brittle Gunners have been lacking a leader at the back.
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The hope is that Sokratis, who has played for European giants like Borussia Dortmund and AC Milan, will be a vocal figure in the dressing room as the Unai Emery era begins.
For the first time in over two decades, Arsene Wenger will not be in the dugout and the fact that the Gunners have a tough opening round of the fixtures doesn’t exactly help matters.
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They take on defending champions Manchester City at the Emirates on the opening day before travelling to Stamford Bridge to take on crosstown rivals Chelsea the following week.
Arsenal have been busy in the transfer market and while they haven’t made any marquee singings yet, the acquisitions of goalkeeper Bernd Leno, Stephan Lichsteiner and Sokratis have definitely shored up their leaky backline.
They have an intense pre-season as well for they will be taking on the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, among others in the coming weeks as they amp up their preparations for the 2018-19 season.