He has the potential to be the Weso of his generation - but with the recognition at international level that his talent deserves.
Wes Hoolahan was 30 when he won the second of his 43 Ireland caps, four years after his debut. Jason Knight, at the age of 21, on Wednesday made his 12th senior appearance.
And while it was another miserable Nations League night for the Boys in Green, Knight’s performance was the one silver lining.
He is blazing a trail to the very top and is sure to leave relegated Derby County this summer, with Newcastle, Leeds and Everton all interested in bringing him to the Premier League.
On tonight’s evidence, it was easy to see why there is so much top-flight interest in the Dubliner.
There were serious shades of Weso in his performance, as he glided around the final third, picking up little pockets of space and displaying an array of tricks with the ball.
They are both of similar stature too - small, but well able to deal with the physical side of the game.
It didn’t take him long to get into the swing of things against Ukraine.
Less than a minute was on the clock when he burst forward from midfield and sent the ball left to Callum Robinson.
Knight’s athleticism and vision deserved better than the poor touch by the West Brom man that saw the ball spin away and the chance of a strike at goal disappear.
He had a couple of shots on target early on in a blistering Irish start that he largely orchestrated.
Both attempts were saved by Real Madrid’s back-up goalkeeper Andriy Lunin.
But while the youngster didn’t add to his solitary goal so far, there were plenty more reasons to be excited when it came to Knight’s performance tonight.
He has the potential to make Weso’s favourite position his own for many years to come, as he showed with that rare ability to take a pass on the turn and immediately identify targets ahead of him.
And he wasn’t afraid to muck in at the other end of the pitch either, as he flew into tackles deep inside the Irish half.
Hoolahan didn’t break into the English top-flight until the age of 29 with Norwich.
After his fine start to senior football at Shelbourne, including a mesmerising Champions League display against Deportivo La Coruna in 2004, he spent time in Scotland and League One, before winning promotion to the Championship with Blackpool aged 25.
It would be four full seasons, including one in League One with Norwich, before his Premier League breakthrough.
Knight is ahead of the Euro 2016 hero in that respect.
But if he gets anywhere close to what Hoolahan was able to produce on a consistent basis for club and country, we are in for a treat.
It will forever be a stain on Irish football that the legendary Dublin magician had to wait so long before he could grace the international stage on a regular basis.
Even last year, at the age of 40, Hoolahan was still tearing it up in League One with Cambridge.
However Knight - almost 20 years his junior - can go a long way towards erasing that hurt by realising his own incredible potential.
Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
