The Villa Park midfielder and the Brighton forward will both be on Republic of Ireland duty this international break.
Aston Villa midfielder Conor Hourihane has spoken highly of fellow Republic of Ireland international Aaron Connolly, who played a huge role in Brighton & Hove Albion’s Premier League thrashing of Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend (Sky Sports News).
The Seagulls teenager was drafted into Mick McCarthy’s senior ROI squad just hours after impressing against Spurs on Saturday in his first Premier League start, having initially been called up for the nation’s Under-21s, following an injury to Portsmouth’s Ronan Curtis the same weekend.
Speaking on Tuesday as the Boys in Green prepare for two away games against Georgia and Switzerland in Euro 2020 qualifying, Hourihane admitted that that Connolly’s two goals against Spurs came as “no surprise” to him, having come up against him when Villa and Brighton locked horns in the League Cup.
Connolly failed to find the scoresheet in the game but managed to hit the woodwork twice and Hourihane admitted that his compatriot gave the Villa central defenders a “tough, tough night” despite Dean Smith’s side ultimately running out 3-1 winners on the south coast.
“I played against him a few weeks ago in the EFL Cup against Brighton and he played 60 minutes in that game and he gave our two centre-halves a tough, tough night,” Hourihane is quoted by Sky Sports News as saying about the £2.2million-valued player (Transfermarkt).
“When he was banging in a few goals at the weekend that was no surprise to me. He’s got that energy and that work rate to give centre-halves a tough day at the office. He did that against Spurs on Saturday so I was delighted to see it. It’s fantastic for him. It’s always great for the Irish set up when there’s lads doing well.”
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
