‘He’s INCREDIBLE’: Pascal Gross praises Leandro Trossard’s ‘football ability’ but insists Brighton need to ‘focus on themselves’ as they prepare for their former team-mate at the Emirates
- Pascal Gross was full of praise for his former Brighton teammate Leandro Trossard
- Trossard left the Seagulls to join the title-chasing Gunners in January
- Pair will face each other for the first time when Brighton travels to the Emirates
Pascal Gross is not surprised to see Leandro Trossard shine at Arsenal, but warned his former team-mate there will be no room for emotion or sentiment when Brighton visit the Emirates on Sunday.
Trossard spent three and a half years on the south coast before joining Arsenal in January for £21 million.
The Belgium striker has been a vital part of their title run in recent months, with one goal and eight assists in 17 Premier League appearances for Mikel Arteta’s side.
He faces his former team for the first time on Sunday, with Arsenal looking to keep up with Manchester City and Brighton securing European football for the first time.
“He’s doing really well, his football skills are incredible,” said Gross.
Pascal Gross (right) praised former teammate Leandro Trossard ahead of Brighton’s visit to Arsenal
Trossard joined the Gunners in January for £21 million after spending three and a half seasons on the south coast
“He’s fast, he can finish with his left and right foot, he can create.
“So he’s a really good player. But we are looking forward to the game because it is another big opportunity for us.
“It will be nice to see him, but we have to focus on ourselves.”
Trossard was accused of going AWOL at Brighton in January to force a move.
But prior to the match, Arteta was full of praise for the striker’s impact.
“There was a situation there, we wanted the player and they were OK to sell the player to us. When that happens, everyone is happy,” said the Arsenal boss.
“I love having him in the squad, he’s been great and you can see the contribution he’s made.”
But Gross insisted there will be no room for sentimentality as Brighton continue to chase European football
Roberto De Zerbi’s Brighton are looking to recover after a shock 5-1 home defeat to relegation-threatened Everton earlier this week.
The result dented their European hopes, but Gross said: “We can’t change it anymore, all we can do is look ahead, train well, train as well as we can and be prepared for the next game.”
Teammate Deniz Undav added: “It’s a bad result, nobody expected this. As Pascal said, we have to take our responsibility and react very well on Sunday.’
Evan Ferguson, Danny Welbeck and Pascal Gross support American Express in their upcoming search for a TikTok correspondent to join Brighton & Hove Albion on the Premier League Summer Series tour to the US, and get exclusive behind-the-scenes access.