Rio Ferdinand reacts to Bukayo Saka’s display in Arsenal win

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Rio Ferdinand has told BT Sport (broadcast on 26/1; 22:19) that Bukayo Saka was tremendous to watch as Arsenal beat Southampton 3-1 on Tuesday.

Mikel Arteta’s men got some revenge on the Saints for the weekend’s result in the FA Cup. Goals from Nicolas Pepe, Saka and Alexandre Lacazette gave them the three points.

It was a superb performance from the Gunners. And Saka seemed to, once again, be at the heart of everything good that Arsenal did.

Of course, he scored with a brilliant finish during the first-half. But he also provided the assist for the third with a superb ball across the box for Lacazette.

And Ferdinand insisted that he is a big fan of the 19-year-old and the way that he seems to step up no matter how well those around him appear to be playing.

“He was tremendous to watch,” he told BT Sport. “The maturity with which he plays is so impressive as well. He can play one or two touch, plays off both feet. But his decision making, for me, he plays as someone well beyond his years. He makes the right decisions at the right time.

“He’s so comfortable wherever he plays. He’s played probably about five or six positions in this team already. They’ve been struggling, they’ve been doing well, they’ve been struggling. He’s been a constant in that. But he can play any position.”

Saka scored his fifth goal of the Premier League season on the south coast. Remarkably, he is one of just two teenagers to have scored more than one top flight goal this term.

The other – Fabio Silva of Wolves – has two to his name.

As Ferdinand notes, he seems to have played everywhere for the Gunners. At the moment, he looks at home in the forward line. But he has also stood out playing in midfield or even in defence.

And it says a lot that on a night where several Arsenal players staked a genuine claim to be man of the match, Saka was arguably the man who really stole the show.