Nicolas Jackson is giving Aston Villa something few Premier League strikers can offer

Nicolas Jackson will quite rightly receive the majority of the headlines following Aston Villa's victory over Manchester City, because scoring twice against one of the strongest teams in the Premier League is a tremendous achievement, particularly in a game of that magnitude. What I found equally impressive, though, was everything else he contributed to the performance, because I'm struggling to think of many centre-forwards currently playing in the division who are offering the same all-round package as Jackson.

Erling Haaland is obviously the outstanding goalscorer in English football and one of the very best strikers in the world, but there are different ways of assessing what a centre-forward brings to a team, and Jackson is becoming an incredibly complete player under Unai Emery. His movement, work rate, ability to stretch defences and willingness to make life uncomfortable for opponents are all outstanding, and the goals are increasingly becoming the reward for everything else he contributes.

Against Manchester City, there were periods when Jackson was effectively operating as the left-sided attacker in Villa's 4-2-4 shape, which allowed him to attack the space between the opposition's centre-back and full-back. It was a clever tactical adjustment from Emery, but it also required a striker capable of understanding those movements, recognising where the space would appear and having the physical attributes to exploit it.

Jackson did that brilliantly, repeatedly getting into positions that caused problems for Marc Guehi and the City defence, and I thought the way he ran them ragged throughout the afternoon was exceptional. Guehi was withdrawn at half-time after a difficult opening period, and while Villa's tactical structure contributed to those problems, Jackson's relentless movement was a major factor.

There are plenty of centre-forwards who can score goals when opportunities are created for them, but the really valuable ones are capable of affecting games even when they're not finding the back of the net. That's something I've appreciated about Jackson throughout his time at Villa, because even in matches when he hasn't scored, his overall performances have generally been encouraging.

He never stops running, he's prepared to occupy defenders for long periods and his movement creates opportunities for the players around him. Against City, that was particularly important with John McGinn and Johan Manzambi operating in advanced central areas, because Jackson's willingness to move away from the traditional centre-forward position made it more difficult for City's defenders to establish who they should be marking.

There's also something interesting about the confidence he's playing with, because the difference between the Jackson we're seeing at Aston Villa and the player who attracted so much criticism during his time at Chelsea is enormous. I don't think that necessarily means he was a poor player previously, because the qualities we're seeing now haven't suddenly appeared from nowhere, but he looks like somebody who understands exactly what his manager wants and knows he has the backing of the people around him.

Emery will be working relentlessly to extract every possible improvement from his game, and Jackson appears to be responding brilliantly to that coaching. His finishing against City was another indication of a player operating with real belief, particularly the first goal, which was taken with the confidence of somebody who expects to score when an opportunity presents itself.

I also wonder how many clubs will be looking at his performances and regretting not making a stronger attempt to sign him. Tottenham and Newcastle are two clubs that spring to mind as teams who might have benefited enormously from having a player with Jackson's attributes, particularly given the difficulty of finding a centre-forward capable of contributing so much outside the penalty area.

Strikers are incredibly expensive, and we've seen clubs spend enormous sums of money trying to find somebody who can lead the line effectively without necessarily getting the balance right. Villa appear to have recruited somebody whose qualities suit their manager almost perfectly, and the fact that he's already producing performances of this level suggests there's still plenty more to come.

What makes Jackson such an exciting player is that I don't think he's anywhere near the finished article, despite already demonstrating that he can cause serious problems for some of the best defenders in the Premier League. He's working with a manager who has a clear understanding of how to use him, he's surrounded by attacking players who complement his strengths and his confidence must be absolutely enormous after scoring twice against Manchester City.

For all the attention his goals will receive, I suspect Emery will be equally pleased with the amount of work Jackson put into the game and the way he carried out his tactical responsibilities. That's what makes him such a valuable centre-forward, and if he continues developing at this rate, Villa may well have one of the outstanding attacking players in the Premier League on their hands.