Vlad Dragomir earned positive reviews for his performance in Perugia’s win over Chievo Verona on Sunday, as the Romanian began his second season in Italy.

Dragomir left Arsenal on a free transfer in 2018, joining Serie B side Perugia. After a couple of cup victories against Triestina and Brescia to kick off the new campaign, Dragomir and Perugia started their new league season with another win over the weekend.

The 20-year-old former Gunner was influential in the result, winning the penalty that earned them all three points in the 70th minute.

The Italian media certainly took notice of Dragomir’s performance:

“(Dragomir was) master of the entire pitch,” Italian outlet Calcio Grifo wrote after the game. “He turned the responsibility of the number 10 on his shoulders into energy and quality.

“He shot through the opponent’s defence like a musketeer and won the match-winning penalty in the decisive duel.”

There was a lot of hype around Dragomir during his time with Arsenal, but he never quite made it to the first team. At u23 level he struggled to nail down one position, moving from left to right to centre-forward to deep in midfield.

The player will hope his move to the second tier of Italian football is only temporary, and he’ll be playing at the top level very soon, whether with Perugia or elsewhere.

After an eighth-place finish last season, it’s possible they can push for promotion, but it’s not going to be easy.