Jackson impressed during the 2023/24 campaign, scoring 17 goals and creating several more despite it being his first year in England and playing under a new head coach in Mauricio Pochettino.

The Senegal international has another new head coach in Maresca but the results have been the same: Jackson is scoring regularly in the Premier League and proving to be a nightmare for opposition defences both on and off the ball.

Jackson has already scored seven goals and has three assists in just 13 games in the Premier League this season, a record which puts him joint fifth in the charts, alongside Cole Palmer, Yoane Wissa and Matheus Cunha.

So it will come as no surprise to hear Maresca has been pleased with his striker so far.

‘He is doing very well with us,' Maresca said. 'Since we started, he has been open minded in what we ask him, and sometimes we require different things from him.

'He’s has an open mind and wants to learn and he’s doing very well, not just in goals and assists, but also the way he works off the ball. The way he presses, he is always aggressive and we are very happy.'

Maresca is a head coach who looks to improve himself on a daily basis and his squad are looking to do the same.

The Italian highlighted two of the areas where Jackson could improve during his pre-Aston Villa interview, which you can watch in full above.

‘He is already good - good enough for us - but like all players, there are many things he can do better,' Maresca said.

'For sure, this season he’s had one-v-one chances he has missed - that can happen - but he can improve that area. He can be a bit more brave on the ball when we need to link with him but overall there are many areas he’s already improved a lot.’