One Luton player was left very impressed by an Arsenal star despite being on the losing side in Tuesday’s Premier League clash at the Emirates Stadium.
A fantastic strike from Martin Odegaard put the Gunners 1-0 ahead after some fantastic pressing from Emile Smith Rowe in midfield, before the Arsenal No.10 made the second by forcing an own goal from Daiki Hashioka.
It was a professional performance from Arsenal – and also a crucial result in the Premier League title race.
So, which Arsenal star received praise from a Luton defender after the 2-0 win? Let’s take a look…
Arsenal star receives praise from Luton defender
Well, it was Tom Lockyer – working on punditry duty for TNT Sports rather than taking part in the game due to his heart problems – who praised Arsenal No.10 Emile Smith Rowe after the Gunners secured all three points.
As the England international walked over for his post-match interview, the Luton No.4 said: “Emile, well played tonight, I thought you were brilliant.”
Even Rob Edwards singled Smith Rowe out for praise after the 2-0 win, calling the Hale End graduate “an exceptional player” in his post-match press conference.
It was a significant evening for the 23-year-old.
Smith Rowe had not started a Premier League game since the 2-1 win away to Nottingham Forest in January, and has only made three Premier League starts in total this season.
Therefore, some signs of rustiness would have been understandable, although the man from Croydon did not look like he needed to dust off any cobwebs whatsoever.
Emile Smith Rowe shines
There can be a number of potential banana skins amid a Premier League title race, as Arsenal found out last season amid poor results against Southampton, Brighton and Nottingham Forest.
Luton represented another tricky test, although Smith Rowe popped up with two vital moments to ensure Arsenal coasted to a relatively simply 2-0 win.
As shown by WhoScored, the Londoner registered two key passes against the Hatters – no Arsenal player recorded more – while he also made two successful interceptions.
Again, no Arsenal player made more interceptions – Mikel Arteta surely loved Smith Rowe’s intensity and desire to press Luton in attacking areas.
The attacking midfielder even said he was getting cramp after just 50 minutes – which is no surprise given how much ground he covered.
Hopefully, Smith Rowe can keep it up and save his Arsenal career – which has been clouded in doubt recently.
The post 'You were brilliant': Luton defender tells Arsenal player he was amazing after last night's 2-0 win appeared first on TBR Football.