His streak is OVER! Bukayo Saka’s 485 DAY STREAK of starts for Arsenal ends after Mikel Arteta started the Gunners star on the bench as he confirms the winger is battling illness and missed training on Friday.
- Bukayo Saka has been left on Arsenal’s bench against Leeds due to illness
- Mikel Arteta confirmed that Saka had been fighting an illness during the week
- It is the first time that Saka has not started a Premier League match since 2021
Mikel Arteta has explained that Bukayo Saka’s relegation to the Arsenal bench against Leeds last Saturday was due to the winger’s illness.
Gunnery boss Arteta was forced to name a Premier League starting squad without Saka for the first time since December 2021, when Arsenal were beaten 3-2 at Old Trafford by Manchester United.
The skilled winger has been a mainstay in Arteta’s starting XI ever since, but he started on the bench against a Leeds side looking to avoid relegation to the Championship.
Arteta confirmed Saka’s absence before the match, explaining that the 21-year-old missed training on Friday but felt well enough to be named on the bench for Saturday’s clash with the Emirates.
“He couldn’t train on Friday, he wasn’t feeling well and he didn’t train,” Arteta said.
Bukayo Saka has been named to Arsenal’s Premier League bench for the first time since December 2021
Saka (left) did not start against Leeds on Saturday after feeling unwell earlier in the week.
“Today it feels a little better so we can have it,” he added.
Saka’s absence would have caused some Arsenal fans to fear their quest for a first Premier League title in 20 years could be cut short.
However, those fears were quickly allayed when Gabriel Jesus scored his first start since returning from injury with a brace against Leeds.
Saka recently received his first Premier League player of the month award for March after scoring three goals and registering two assists in the English top flight during the month.
But Arteta vowed he wouldn’t let his prized attacking asset let his recent success for both club and country go to his head as he jokingly warned Arsenal to “always have a stick ready” to hit and bring him back. to the earth.
Mikel Arteta praised the winger’s humble nature but joked that he will try to keep his feet on the ground.
Saka (left) is expected to return to the starting line-up against Liverpool next weekend
The Spaniard joked before the game: “He’s going to have to deal with that, the expectations of the media, the attention on the pitch: when you want to fulfill a role like he has at the moment, you have to be able to do that. We have to help him.
So don’t read too much, don’t listen too much, just focus on what you have to do every day. That’s all.’
The manager added: ‘We don’t know if he’s aware of that (hype). We don’t know how much he reads, how much we allow him to read and listen. And we always have a stick ready, don’t worry!
Saka’s absence is expected to be temporary and he will likely return to Arteta’s starting squad for next weekend’s tenacious trip to Anfield.