Zinchenko claims Saka should be treated like Messi, Neymar and Ronaldo

Suraj Radia

• 20 Feb 2023 10:52 CST
• 2 min read

Oleksandr Zinchenko has insisted that Arsenal teammate Bukayo Saka deserves the same respect from referees as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar.

Both Saka and Zinchenko were on the scoresheet in Arsenal’s dramatic 4-2 win over Aston Villa, with the Ukraine international grabbing his first ever Premier League goal in his seventh year in England.

Saka was booked in the win and threw the ball in frustration with referee Simon Hooper, with the England star distraught at being penalised while his opponents seemingly avoid punishment for fouling him.

The 21-year-old has been one of the most prolific dribblers this season but has only drawn 40 fouls – less than eight other players in the league ¬– and Zinchenko was adamant that referees should be aware of defenders ‘provoking’ Saka.

Zinchenko said: "Bukayo is an unbelievable player, all the full backs from the other teams know he’s so dangerous, so they try to provoke him, tackle him and the referees should know this.

“We can speak about Messi, Cristiano, Neymar and players like this. The referees need to protect this kind of player. Apart from Bukayo, we have other front players who are so dangerous and the referees need to be careful, they need to look after them of course.”

Should Saka be drawing more fouls?

The most fouled player in Europe was revealed to be Vinicius Junior, with the Real Madrid winger having been brought down more than 79 times this seasons, 20 more than Neymar in second.

In the Premier League, Wilfried Zaha has drawn a league-high 57 fouls, a relatively unsurprising stat given that the Crystal Palace man has often topped the rankings in that metric in past seasons.

However, Saka has made 109 progressive carries this season, 12 more than the next highest player in Jack Grealish, yet the Manchester City star has been fouled nine more times than the Arsenal man.

While the stats may not always tell the whole story, Saka’s constant presence in every dribbling metric implies that he perhaps has not had a favourable whistle from referees and the forward may have some justification in feeling ‘targeted’ by defenders.