Ian Wright says Bukayo Saka is going to need a rest from first-team action because he is going ‘full tilt’ after Arsenal’s 3-2 win over Manchester United on Sunday.
The Highbury hero stated that Saka is playing ‘consistently’ well, as he proved with his stunning long-range effort which helped Mikel Arteta’s side move five points clear of Manchester City in the Premier League table, with a game in hand.
Saka has started every game for the Gunners this season, including being a key figure for England at the Qatar World Cup.
Added to that, he has featured in six European games, as well as starting their recent FA Cup win over League One Oxford United.
That’s a lot of minutes for the 21-year-old, but if he is to play week in and week out – Champions League and the Premier League – for the majority of his career, then he needs to get used to this.
Despite that, and following the arrival of Leandro Trossard, Wright is hoping Arsenal’s star boy is handed some sort of rest sooner rather than later, as he told Premier League Productions (22/01/23 at 6:30 pm).
“He’s come up again with the goods for Arsenal,” said Wright. “The way he is playing, he is playing consistently (well).
“I think it’s a good thing now as well, with Trossard coming in there now. He’s got somebody in there, if need be, he can get a break because I think he is going to need one at some stage.
“He is going full tilt since he has been in that first team and his standards are very, very high and he never drops beneath them.”
NO REST FOR THE WICKED
Well, with Arsenal sitting at the top of the table and Manchester City breathing down their necks, there isn’t going to be any rest for Saka.
Yes, Trossard will bring added value, quality and depth to the forward line, but unless he pulls off a few mad performances from the bench, it’s going to be cameos from the Belgium international for now.
The only way Arteta can provide Saka with some breathing space is by taking the £70k-a-week star (Spotrac) off, after the hour mark, during games, the only issue with that is Arsenal need to be a lot more comfortable in games for that to happen.
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