Bukayo Saka has revealed that Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta identified Jack Grealish as Aston Villa’s major threat at the Emirates Stadium last weekend.
Villa rocked up to North London and left with a shock 3-0 victory in what was a miserable night for Arsenal.
Grealish starred for the visitors and set up Aston Villa’s third on the night, converted by Ollie Watkins for his second of the game.
Saka is now England team-mates with the 25-year-old midfielder, who he claims has impressed him most in training with the Three Lions.
He told Sky Sports: “He’s a top player. When I came here the first time he was the player who impressed me the most in training. Before we played against Villa at the weekend we analysed him and picked him out as one of their main threats and he showed it in the game.
“He was amazing from start to finish, so it’s going to be good to play with him and not against him this week.”
Arsenal and Aston Villa fans will hope to see their stars in action tonight when Gareth Southgate’s side meet the Republic of Ireland in a friendly.
Grealish dazzled for the Three Lions in a friendly win over Wales last month and although Saka was less impressive than the West Midlands star, we’re talking about a 19-year-old and one who will undoubtedly improve as he gains more experience at this level.
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