‘It’s a top touch in the Premier League’ – Arsenal fans drool over Mikel Arteta’s dirty skills in Lyon friendly win

MIKEL ARTETA produced a blast from the past as he tested Arsenal’s flair for the future.

The Gunners boss wowed fans with a magic touch of control as the ball shot wide in the 3-0 win over Lyon in the Dubai Super Cup.

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And with Arsenal five points clear of Manchester City ahead of their return to the Premier League for Christmas, one fan said: “That’s a top-of-the-table touch.”

Gabriel Magalhaes, Eddie Nketiah and Fabio Vieira brought the sleek looking Gunners out of sight before Arteta brought his youngsters for the second period.

And in one nonchalant moment, the Spaniard showed that his stint as midfield stylist in the Emirates from 2011 to 2016 should never be forgotten.

As the ball whirled at him from a great height, he kept his left foot on the ground while stretching his right leg behind him to heel down it.

Impressed observers on social media posted comments like: “Arteta ball” and “Center mids never lost it”.

He has also been dubbed ‘super Mikel’, and a misty-looking marvel noted, ‘someone who was a midfield maestro. El Captain.”

One player aiming to inherit Arteta’s intriguing mantle is Fabio Vieira.

The Portuguese starlet bagged Arsenal’s third and best volley of the first half against Ligue 1 Lyon.

Magalhaes headed the first set and Nketiah drilled the second into the bottom corner.

Then Vieira curled the curler into the far corner, which some observers might have wondered if he deserved a World Cup spot.

But injuries have undermined the 22-year-old’s debut season at the Prem since arriving from Porto.