Joe Cole singles out 'fantastic' Arsenal star after Europa League win

Joe Cole has praised Fabio Vieira’s ‘velvet left foot’ following Arsenal’s 3-0 win over Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League on Thursday evening.

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The Gunners coasted to victory at the Emirates Stadium as goals from Eddie Nketiah, Rob Holding and Vieira sealed a comfortable night for Mikel Arteta’s side.

Vieira, a £34 million summer signing from Porto, has started just one game in the Premier League this season and has played more minutes in the Europa League so far.

But Cole has been impressed by the Portuguese midfielder’s early performances in Europe.

‘Everything he does, he’s one of those technicians where everything is with purpose,’ Cole told BT Sport.

‘He’s one of them, an absolute velvet left foot, this kid can do anything.

‘He’s got the competition in Martin Odegaard, one of club captains, part of the leadership group, but this guy is a fantastic player.’

Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown added: ‘I thought tonight he’s started to show some really nice touches.

‘I know Odegaard is the club captain now, he [Arteta] has left them on the pitch together, so there’s quite a battle there to see which one is going to come through.

‘They’ve spent quite a bit of money on him. This is where the Europa League is absolutely perfect for the next player and the next level that’s going to nuture and bring through.

‘If we were talking about Champions League now, these guys wouldn’t quite be getting these opportunities. This competition has been kind to Arsenal in the past with Saka and Smith Rowe and is continuing to be so.’

When asked about Vieira’s performance, Arteta said after the game: ‘Yes, you saw the quality.

‘Every time he’s around the box he’s a real threat, really intelligent player and brave. In defending he still needs to do more and understand it more because organisation is key when you play against good teams in ball possession.’

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