Mikel Arteta has admitted that he was nervous for Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka.
The 20-year-old put the cherry on top of a 4-2 victory for the Gunners away to Chelsea last night.
Saka converted a last-minute penalty to make sure of a massive three points for Arsenal in their pursuit of Champions League qualification.
Remember, the England international missed the decisive penalty which handed Euro 2020 glory to Italy at Wembley last summer.
And although the Arsenal manager has admitted that he was worried for his youngster when discovering that he’d be taking the penalty, he had complete confidence in him.
He told the Gunners’ official website: “When I saw that Bukayo took it, honestly, my first thing that I thought was back in the summer and what happened.
“But again, I said to you guys, when that happened to Bukayo, that happened for a reason and he learned so much and he matured so much, that’s why he’s having the season that he’s had.”
It’s massively important for Arsenal to finish in the top four.
Saka is out of contract in the summer of 2024 and the North Londoners’ won’t want any rival outfits using their failure to get into the Champions League as an excuse to try and lure the player away.
At the moment, he is earning £30,000 per week and in line for a major pay rise – and deservedly so.
But it’ll be much easier to convince Saka to stick around if Arteta has Champions League football to offer him.
Someone of his ability will be wanting to test himself against Europe’s elite and the Europa League is, quite honestly, rather boring at this stage.
Arsenal haven’t been in the Champions League since 2016 but it’s time that changes.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
