Now that Matt Targett (£4.0m), Hidemasa Morita (£5.0m), Oscar Zambrano (£4.5m) and Jack Butland (£4.5m) are in, Hull City have added a second goalkeeper to their squad: 23-year-old Greek international Konstantinos Tzolakis.
He joins from Olympiacos for a club-record fee, believed to be £20 million plus add-ons.
Having made his debut in 2020, Tzolakis had to initially be patient until 2023/24’s breakthrough performances in the Conference League. He saved three penalties in the quarter-final shootout versus Fenerbahce, then kept out Fiorentina in a victorious final.
Yet it wasn’t until 2024/25 that he became the Olympiacos number one. Last season, he kept 19 clean sheets in 32 top-flight matches, alongside three in the Champions League.
FPL POTENTIAL
A goalkeeper boasting nine international caps, as well as 64 clean sheets from 131 appearances, has the pedigree to do well. But do Hull?
The playoff winners scraped promotion, despite having the Championship’s second-worst expected goals conceded (xGC, 82.69) record.
- READ MORE: What to expect from Sergej Jakirovic + Hull
- READ MORE: What to expect from Hull’s defence
FPL managers are assuming they’ll be this year’s whipping boys, but that could mean lots of saves.
Our free-to-all Fixture Ticker thinks Hull’s early schedule is eighth-best. And, despite last season’s overall leakiness, both matches against Gameweek 2 opponents Coventry City ended 0-0. Admittedly, these sides will look radically different by 29 August.
At least Sergej Jakirovic has given a straightforward answer about who’ll be between the sticks. As Ivor Pandur left for Rangers, Butland came the other way. But Tzolakis arrives as the main man.
“He’s our first choice. I had a conversation with him, and everything is fine. I explained to him everything, so he’s looking forward to joining us. Of course, he’s a national team player of Greece, and when we are speaking about national team players, there is quality. You cannot be in the national team by accident.” – Sergej Jakirovic, speaking to Hull Live
A regular starter, then, and someone who will almost certainly be a budget-friendly £4.5m.
But a look at the (industry-leading!) RMT’s projected points for £4.5m goalkeepers hints that there are better options at this price point out there; Tzolakis will replace Butland below once he’s added to the game.
