Arsenal suffer yet another injury scare as attacker Bukayo Saka appears to have suffered a knock in the North London derby.
The 23-year-old had a huge impact on the game as he delivered a precise in-swinging corner that was headed in by Gabriel Maghalaes in the second half.
With the Gunners crawling towards victory, the English winger went to ground in the 85th minute, holding both of his legs before receiving treatment. However, he was unable to continue, and he was replaced by Ethan Nwaneri.
Mikel Arteta delivers concerning injury update on Bukayo Saka
Speaking to the post-match conference, manager Mikel Arteta provided an update on the academy graduate’s injury. As quoted by Football London, he said:
“I don’t know. I made two changes with the front players and suddenly he’s down. I looked at the bench and the options that we had and we had to adapt. I don’t know exactly what it is but he could not continue.”
Arteta is already missing top stars like Mikel Merino, Martin Odegaard, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Riccardo Calafiori.
But we believe that Arsenal’s selection headache will make players even more hungry to perform. We saw them playing with intent vs. Spurs, and they are expected to go hard against Manchester City and Atalanta.
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The Gooners have options on the wings in case Saka doesn’t make it to the next match. Gabriel Jesus has played in the right wing spot before, and new signing Raheem Sterling can provide further firepower on the flanks.
However, the fans will be pleased to hear that the North London outfit are confident that the player will make a full recovery this week (via journalist Simon Collings on X).
🚨 Bukayo Saka is understood to have been suffering with cramps & as such, it is hoped he will make a full recovery for Arsenal’s trips to Atalanta & Manchester City this week. [@sr_collings] pic.twitter.com/1qgxuwYMhI
— afcstuff (@afcstuff) September 16, 2024
They are less concerned since Saka suffered from a cramp rather than a major injury and is expected to feature against Europa League winners Atalanta on Thursday and Pep Guardiola’s side on Sunday.
It is vital to have the in-form winger who is firing on all cylinders this campaign. He has already provided four assists and scored one goal in four Premier League games.
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Saka rarely gets injured and has an excellent fitness record, missing just 12 games for club and country in the past four years.
