ITV Sport pundit Roy Keane has branded critics of Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount “idiots” after watching the 22-year-old perform for England during the international break.

In the past, some have accused the likes Frank Lampard and Gareth Southgate of favouritism for selecting the midfielder ahead of others but Keane was having none of it:

“It doesn’t matter what people outside the game think – there are a lot of idiots out there. He has performed well enough for every manager to say ‘Listen, you are going to be in my starting line-up’. Outstanding player. He wants to be an all round-midfielder. I never hear anything negative about him off the pitch. He seems a brilliant young kid.”

You only have to look at Mount’s statistics to see why the England international is picked regularly for club and country. He has six goals and six assists in 39 appearances for Chelsea this campaign, and he has scored four goals in his last 11 international caps.

Mount’s work ethic is also second to none and, at his age, he has massive potential going forward in the next five to seven years. As Keane says, he is an excellent player who both possesses the natural talent and right mentality; a combination that is quite rare in the modern game.