When Alan Shearer is impressed by a striker, you sit up and take notice.
The former Newcastle front man was the best of his generation, and one of the greatest centre-forwards the English game has ever had, so he knows a thing or two about what’s required to be a success as an attacker.
Against Liverpool on Wednesday night, Arsenal’s Reiss Nelson certainly caught Shearer’s eye.
“I was really impressed, there was no panic at all for someone from so young,” Shearer said on Premier League Productions and cited by the Daily Express.
“He won’t have been in that position many times, but he doesn’t panic. He takes the touch with the left foot and sticks it away with the right.
“He’s under pressure, he hasn’t really got that much time to think about it, which probably helped him.”
The Reds’ form has tailed off significantly since Premier League football resumed after the lockdown, but that shouldn’t take away from a magnificent Arsenal performance.
Mikel Arteta is beginning to get the Gunners playing in his image and as the players continue to understand his methods, more performances like the one we saw against Jurgen Klopp’s side can be expected.
It’s a sea change in attitude since the appointment of Unai Emery, with Arteta’s strong and robust style of management earning him the respect that perhaps Emery never had.
That can only bode well for the north Londoners, and if they can keep bringing through talent such as Reiss Nelson, the future at the Emirates Stadium looks very bright indeed.