Arsenal DESPERATELY need a Bukayo Saka back-up

Cameron Smith

• 31 Mar 2024 20:18 BST
• 3 min read

Bukayo Saka has been worked into the ground since his breakthrough into Arsenal’s senior team and the effects of that have begun to show.

The 22-year-old was forced to withdraw from England’s squad for their March international friendlies against Brazil and Belgium, yet he was still named in Arsenal’s starting XI for their crucial Premier League clash against Manchester City on Sunday afternoon.

During his pre-match press conference on Friday, Mikel Arteta revealed that Saka was yet to train with Arsenal’s squad after returning from England duty, but it was little surprise to see the winger included in the Gunners’ starting team.

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After all, Saka is arguably Arsenal’s most important attacker and he has missed just one Premier League game since April 2021.

The Englishman was substituted after 78 minutes against Man City, with Arteta stating that his withdrawal was simply a precaution, and his performance at the Etihad Stadium was underwhelming to say the least.

Saka was clearly not fully fit and his match statistics were not pretty reading. The Arsenal man didn’t score or assist, while he amassed zero chances created, zero dribbles completed, zero passes into the final third and zero accurate crosses.

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His FootballCritic match rating of 5.9 was also the second-worst of any player who started the match - with only Jorginho registering a worse score.

Saka was almost non-existent, but it wasn’t his fault. Arteta relies on the England international so heavily that he was included in the starting Xi when he evidently wasn’t ready.

Arsenal need to sign a Bukayo Saka back-up

Saka should’ve been rested against Man City, but Arsenal don’t have a reliable, consistent back-up on that flank. Leandro Trossard performs the role of back-up expertly on the left, however Arsenal don’t really have someone who is capable of filling in for Saka if needed.

As a result, signing a player like Matias Soule, Raphinha or Donyell Malen, all of whom could be on the market this summer, must be considered a priority for Arsenal.

Saka is a fantastic player, and one of the best right wingers in world football, but he isn’t indestructible and signing a back-up would be an extremely smart idea given Saka’s risk of injury.