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ASTON VILLA starlet Keinan Davis has ended speculation over his future by signing a new three-year contract.
The teenage striker had been linked with Manchester United and Arsenal in recent weeks.
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However Steve Bruce was always confident the youngster would benefit from learning his trade at Villa, where he has scored twice in 13 Championship appearances, since making his first top team start against Norwich in August.
Injuries to Jonathan Kojia and Gabby Agbonlahor have allowed Davis to seize his first-team chance with both hands this season, after making his Villa debut against Tottenham in the FA Cup last January.
The youngster has also broken into Keith Downing’s England Under-20 squad this season, although a hip crock kept him out of this week’s defeat to Germany.
He said: “It’s a great feeling to have signed a new contract.
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“This is another milestone for me this season: I had my first start and my full league debut then an international call-up and this is another one.
“The hard work continues, now. I’ve got to keep working and reach that next milestone.”
Bruce gave a glowing report of "quiet lad" Davis.
He said: "There's nothing quite like when a young one comes through for you.
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"I had it at Sunderland with Jordan Henderson, then again with Darren Carter at Sunderland.
"It was just at the right time when I threw him in. Some would say it was a calculated gamble.
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"But he came in and, straightaway against Norwich, he lifted the whole atmosphere in the stadium. He lifted the whole spirit of a place, from a negative to a positive.
"This young kid was rejected by Stevenage, then he went to non-league and now he's the Aston Villa centre-forward. How good does that sound?
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"It's been a meteoric rise. Not much more than a year ago he was playing for Biggleswade. But he's an old-fashioned centre forward, the sort Aston Villa have always been associated with.
"He's known rejection and he's come through. He's a quiet lad who's grasped the opportunity and he's doing everything right at the moment."
