Darren Bent has revealed how Jack Grealish handled his first ever training session with the Aston Villa first-team when he was still a teenager, and how it was quite clear there was something about him.

Grealish’s talent was evident from a young age and he trained with the senior players at the Midlands club early on in his fledgling career.

He of course went on to be a fan favourite at his boyhood club and was given the captain’s armband before making a £100million move to Premier League champions Man City.

Bent was one of the senior players at Villa when Grealish made his first steps into the first-team and remembered seeing him at the start.

“He was in the squad and I was there for his very first training session,” the talkSPORT pundit said on Drivetime.

“He was quite quiet and shy, but every so often he’d make one or two touches and you’d go ‘ooh’.

“He would have been a young, young kid then. I remember coming back from injury and playing in an Under-23s game and he absolutely ran the show.

“Back then he played wide of a three but could play a number ten as well, or you’d have two sitters in front of the back-four and he’d sit in that hole.

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“I do like him coming from the left, but I think Jack’s best position is when you don’t pigeon-hole him.

“The reason he went for £100m is because he’s a bit of a maverick. He’ll go and get the ball pretty much from wherever he wants on the pitch. There’s no real role for him.

“I get it – the higher up that ladder you go, you don’t get that luxury.”

Grealish is starting to find his feet with Man City and also has became a key squad member for Gareth Southgate’s England side.

He was used as an impact player during Euro 2020 and there was always a sense of excitement and anticipation when he got the ball at his feet.

On Grealish’s role for England, Bent added: “I think he could do an effective job from the start as well. You could even flip it and say he’d be responsible for tiring out the fullbacks for 60 or 70 minutes.

“But yeah, top top talent.”