Emile Smith Rowe has hailed Anfield as the best atmosphere he's played in, despite Arsenal struggling on Merseyside as of late.
Liverpool 's stadium is regarded as one of Europe's finest such is the atmosphere it creates, especially on Champions League nights. Smith Rowe played in the 4-0 defeat at Liverpool back in November last year, but despite the result the fans clearly left an impression on the 22-year-old.
"It was at Anfield," he said when quizzed on the best atmosphere he's experienced.. "The fans were crazy there. That's probably the biggest atmosphere I've ever experienced."
Arteta attempted to highlight the Anfield influence before their game last term as he said: "To do that you have to know what is Anfield and it’s, believe me, very different to any ground you have experienced in the Premier League. First of all, you have to go there top. I go to Anfield and I’m going to beat them and I’m going to win and I really believe that we go to Anfield and we’re going to beat them."
The academy graduate continues to establish himself at the Emirates, although he is yet to make a start this term having dealt with an injury in pre-season. Smith Rowe has been given regular minutes by Mikel Arteta, who trusted the youngster as he looked to reshape his team.
The Englishman's rise came as Mesut Ozil was being ushered out of north London.Despite that, it is the German who Smith Rowe regards as the best player he's played alongside.
He told GOAL while appearing on Simply The Best: "Everyone knows how good he (Ozil) is, so I'd have to say him." The World Cup winner moved to the Emirates in 2014 and was originally a big hit, but he began to cop criticism for not performing in big games.
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Unai Emery and then Arteta both deemed Ozil surplus to requirements but the German had been handed a mammoth contract with meant he was out in the cold whilst earning huge wages, which made him hard to shift before his eventual exit.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, it is another playmaker who Smith Rowe regards as the best player he's come up against - Kevin De Bruyne.
The Arsenal star has previously cited the Belgian as one of his inspirations, stating in 2018: "In the Premier League, probably De Bruyne. He doesn’t score many free-kicks, but I think his crossing from wide is really good and I look up to him quite a lot."
