The England international may be sidelined for Sunday’s crucial Premier League matchup against Manchester City due to a long-overdue injury.
The fact that Gabriel Jesus scored the opening goal for Arsenal in the Champions League match on Tuesday night in Lens came as no surprise at all. Bukayo Saka provided the assist. That’s his profession. Saka is not only a phenomenal artist, but he’s also blazing hot right now.
With that assist, the winger became the first player in any of the “Big Five” leagues in Europe to record five goals and five assists in a single season. But just as Saka’s role in Jesus’s attack was certain, so was what came next.
At the Stade Bollaert-Delelis, shortly after the half-hour mark, Saka tried a back-heel and felt his hamstring twitch. He was quickly replaced after signaling to the sidelines that something wasn’t right.
After the game, manager Mikel Arteta said, “It doesn’t look good.” And from every angle, it actually doesn’t. Saka’s injury, no matter how serious, is a big problem for Arsenal, but this time it’s especially bad because their talisman is now seriously doubtful for Sunday’s crucial Premier League matchup against Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium.
But even though Saka could have missed the biggest game of the season, it’s difficult to feel much sympathy for Arteta or Arsenal given the precarious scenario they find themselves in—this feels like a mess they created themselves.
We must safeguard Bukayo.
The surprise title contenders were understandably jubilant after Arsenal defeated Aston Villa 4-2 in February, having scored twice in injury time. Oleksandr Zinchenko, who had equalized for his team shortly after the hour, wasn’t quite content, though. In fact, he made it clear in his post-match interview that he was upset about some of the problems Saka had to face at Villa Park
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The Ukrainian remarked, “Bukayo is an unbelievable player.” “The referees should be aware that all the full-backs from the opposing teams attempt to provoke and tackle him because they know he’s extremely dangerous.” We can talk about players like Neymar, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and others. This type of athlete need the protection and care of the officials.”
It’s still a really good point. Officials should always provide protection for the flair players in the game. However, Arteta was well aware that their talisman would remain a target for adversaries.
“Saka’s going to have to deal with that [rough treatment] – and not every week, but every three days,” added the Spaniard. Teams are aware of his skill and desire to stop him because it’s his game. We must keep him safe.”
However, one could argue that the Spanish coach hasn’t performed well enough in that area.
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