'Extraordinary': Micah Richards explains why Curtis Jones' England debut was 'one of the best he's ever seen'

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Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones can’t seem to do much wrong at the moment.

Off the pitch, he recently became a dad in what was a fantastic moment in his personal life, while things are looking good on the sporting front as well.

Jones has forced his way into Arne Slot’s starting XI at Liverpool and recently earned his first England cap.

And things couldn’t have gone better for him on his debut, with Micah Richards showering high praise on the 23-year-old after his performance against Greece.

Micah Richards lauds Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones

England secured a routine 3-0 win against Greece in a UEFA Nations League clash, with Jones playing in the heart of their midfield.

The young Scouser capped off a fine performance with a late goal as his clever backheel found its way into the back of the net past the despairing dive of Odysseas Vlachodimos.

Richards was blown away by his performance, describing it as one of the best debuts he’s ever seen in his career as a player and a broadcaster.

“Curtis Jones was extraordinary. That is one of the best England debuts I have ever seen,” said Richards on the Rest is Football podcast.

“What I mean by that is that when you got to England sometimes the pace is a bit slower and you play the easy pass. If you look at Curtis Jones's body positions he was always available every time.

“When you are playing that position in a pivot you don't always have to be dribbling past people, breaking the lines and playing a fantastic pass it's just being available for the ball.

“I think him in that role, sometimes at Liverpool, he plays as a number eight and likes to get in the box as we saw for that goal, but in terms of being that person who is not afraid to get on it, it showed me his character and how fearless he is.”

Jones stats vs Greece

Jude Bellingham and Virgil van Dijk congratulated Jones after his triumphant debut as he ran the show for England and also got his name on the scoresheet.

• 86 touches and 65/68 passes completed (96% accuracy)
• 7/12 duels won
• 4 tackles
• 1 dribble completed

His stats suggest he was in the thick of the action and contributed to both phases of play, which is an encouraging sign for England in the long run.