Arsenal’s over-reliance on Bukayo Saka was clearly revealed in the 1-2 loss to Lens in the Champions League.
Arsenal’s attack firepower will be significantly reduced if Saka is not on the field. Therefore, it is not difficult to understand why Mikel Arteta still took the risk of letting the 22-year-old player start against Lens in the Champions League.
Saka has been developing into one of the best wingers in Europe. After signing a contract extension for another 5 years, Saka is the first player in 5 major European tournaments this season to have 5 goals and 5 assists in all competitions.
According to British media, Saka felt healthy before the second round of the Champions League group stage despite having to limp off the field in the win over Bournemouth. Previously, the English international had similar problems in the 2-2 draw with Tottenham and was ultimately only able to play 34 minutes against Lens.
Arteta cannot be completely blamed. However, this weekend, the “Gunners” will have an important match with Manchester City in the Premier League. And will Arteta or Saka himself regret it?
When asked about whether he regretted choosing Saka to start against Lens, Arteta shared: “Saka should not have missed any recent matches. We gave him a rest when against Brentford last week”.
The only match Saka has not started so far this season was the win over Brentford in the third round of the Carabao Cup last week. Previously, in eight matches in the Premier League and Champions League, Saka played 683 minutes out of a possible 720 minutes. He has started 87 consecutive matches in the Premier League.
Arteta claimed last week that Saka “now has enough experience to understand when he is ready to help the team and when he is not”. However, he added that “we have to protect him and we have to know when is the right time to let him rest”.
And it seems that Saka’s time to rest has not yet come. The 22-year-old player always wants to contribute in every match, which is shown throughout his career. But remember, Arsenal spent a lot of money this summer to build a squad capable of challenging on many fronts. Therefore, the fact that the “Gunners” are stuck without Saka is really worth discussing.
This is nothing new and it remains a stark contrast to Man City. Saka played 3,131 minutes in the Premier League last season. Meanwhile, the player most used by Man City is defensive midfielder Rodri (2,830 minutes) and in attack, there is a much larger rotation with Bernardo Silva (2,119 minutes), Jack Grealish (2,063 minutes) and Riyad Mahrez (2,063 minutes). Remember, The Citizens went to the final match of the Champions League last season and won the championship.
Arsenal returned to the Champions League for the first time in 6 years and must not repeat the same defeats against Lens. Saka’s teammates also need to step up.
In 34 minutes on the field, Saka touched the ball 27 times and made 16 passes. Leandro Trossard and Kai Havertz only had 33 touches of the ball despite playing 70 minutes, and had 18 and 17 passes respectively. “Gunners” need more than that.
“We did the most difficult thing, scored the first goal, and controlled the match. But we made mistakes that allowed them to get 2 goals,” Arteta said after the match.
This was just Arsenal’s first loss of the season and will not have a big impact on them getting through the group stage. However, in the long run, dependence on Saka will be a worrying problem…
