A real statement performance from Arsenal on Saturday saw the Gunners bounce back to winning ways in the Premier League.
The league leaders’ 4-0 walloping of Leeds United gets our Gameweek 24 Scout Notes underway.
ARTETA ON SAKA
There was yet more angst for Bukayo Saka (£10.0m) owners.
Having had to endure blanks and benchings over the last few weeks, there was the welcome sight of the Arsenal winger on the teamsheet at Elland Road.
But he didn’t even make kick-off. Taking part in a pre-match drill with his teammates, Saka pulled up holding his groin. He was soon replaced in the starting XI by Noni Madueke (£6.8m).
Bukayo Saka has picked up an injury in warm-ups and has been replaced by Noni Madueke for Arsenal’s match with Leeds 🤕🔴 pic.twitter.com/CWvlK7A0UC
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 31, 2026
Mikel Arteta didn’t make the injury sound too bad after full-time but, of course, there would have been little proper assessment of the issue at that point.
“In the warm-up, he had a little niggle, he wasn’t comfortable starting the game, so immediately we made a decision to make that change and bring Noni in.” – Mikel Arteta on Bukayo Saka’s injury
The good news: we should hear from Arteta again on Monday ahead of Arsenal’s EFL Cup semi-final second-leg tie. We then might get a true gauge of Saka’s fitness when the teamsheets come out on Tuesday. If he doesn’t feature against Chelsea, the worry then starts in earnest for Gameweek 25.
Then there’s Gameweek 26, and Arsenal have got a very good chance of ‘doubling’ then. Not only does that Double Gameweek come hot on the heels of Gameweek 25 but we’ll also likely not have an Arteta press conference before the deadline (for all that’s worth…). Arsenal play on the Thursday of that week.
Let’s hope we get some sort of definitive prognosis before this weekend, whether good or bad.
MADUEKE SEIZES HIS CHANCE
The cherry on the excrement for Saka owners was seeing Arsenal run riot without him. Even worse, it was two of his understudies who delivered the first three assists.
Madueke recycled a set piece to set up the first goal for Martin Zubimendi (£5.2m) before the winger’s corner was punched into his own net by Karl Darlow (£3.9m). A lack of end product has often been the criticism of Madueke but he was much better on that front here, also seeing a pinpoint corner headed over from close range by Jurrien Timber (£6.3m).
The kind of display to make Arsenal take their time with Saka’s recovery, if there is an issue?
Even after the ex-Chelsea man came off on the hour, Gabriel Martinelli (£6.8m) emerged on the right flank to cross for Viktor Gyokeres (£8.7m) to score.
Saka update
Above: Noni Madueke deputised for Bukayo Saka on corners from the right flank
ARSENAL RESPOND IN STYLE
What a display this was from Arsenal against a Leeds side that had been in excellent form.
Remember, the Whites had lost only one of their last 10 Premier League fixtures, and even that was a stoppage-time defeat at Newcastle United. They were also unbeaten at Elland Road since November.
The goals will get the headlines but to reduce a much-improved Leeds side, with a raucous home support behind them, to just three shots and 0.15 expected goals (xG) was just as impressive.
“We didn’t find the solution to create chances against them to score goals. Whatever we did today, they, in the first half, found against all our processes always an answer. So, we changed the base formation in the second half. We brought a different type of offensive player on. We brought many offensive players, offensive-thinking players on, as well. But whatever we did, they always had an answer today.” – Daniel Farke on Arsenal
“It’s something that we want. You always have an opponent in front of you that is going to test that and you have to execute the actions and be very, very consistent. You don’t want to concede anything and I’m really impressed because it’s a really tough team to restrict them to that. Between all of us, we’ve done it.” – Mikel Arteta on his defence
Gabriel Magalhaes (£7.0m) even banked defensive contribution (DefCon) points. That’s the sixth time that has happened this season.
Above: Players who banked DefCon points in Leeds v Arsenal
And how far ahead could Arsenal be with a ruthless no. 9? Perhaps they wouldn’t function as well overall with an Erling Haaland (£15.0m) type up top but to see Gyokeres dawdle on the ball when clean through, and Gabriel Jesus (£6.4m) spurn sitters to deny Declan Rice (£7.4m) and Timber assists, did raise the age-old question. To be fair to those two forwards, they did eventually find the net – Jesus rounding off the scoring with a well-taken effort.
Expect Rice to be appearing in an ‘Assists Imminent table’ near you soon: it’s 12 chances created and 1.47 expected assists (xA) over the last four Gameweeks, all without reward.
HAVERTZ IN, ODEGAARD OUT
One more line of note from Arsenal was the surprise inclusion of Kai Havertz (£7.3m). He’d impressed against Kairat in midweek but that was his first start in almost a year, so to see him start again so soon was unexpected.
“Because of the type of game that I expected, and how aggressive and direct they’ve been recently. I believe that the game was going to allow us more space and the temperature will come down in the second or third part of the game, and that’s what we could have changed again with different qualities in the team.” – Mikel Arteta on why he started Kai Havertz
Martin Odegaard‘s (£7.8m) performances hadn’t been great lately, so his benching wasn’t a shock in itself. But what did Arteta’s decision to promote Havertz over Eberechi Eze (£7.6m) say about the latter? We now haven’t seen Eze in a Premier League line-up since Gameweek 16.
Arteta added after full-time that he was “so happy with the way [Odegaard] reacted”; the Norwegian assisted Jesus’ late strike.
£3.9M DARLOW ERROR – WILL LEEDS BUY A GK?
“Of course, he’s disappointed with situation.” – Daniel Farke on Karl Darlow
Daniel Farke didn’t dwell too long on Darlow’s error but he was unsurprisingly grilled about the possibility of recruiting another goalkeeper ahead of Monday’s deadline. Neither Darlow nor Lucas Perri (£4.5m) has really looked up to the job this season. Watch this space in the next 48 hours…
“Our board knows exactly my feelings what I think what we should do during this window. I mentioned several times I wouldn’t speak publicly too much about my opinions because it makes the market just more difficult and for that, sadly, I can’t answer honestly the question anyhow. So, of course, we’re always looking to improve the squad and to bring quality players in, especially in positions where we are perhaps a bit weaker anyhow.” – Daniel Farke, when asked about the possibility of buying another goalkeeper
For Leeds in general, this was a game just to forget about and move on. Farke said afterwards that the Whites had run into the “best team in Europe”, and his troops had been competitive in every other fixture going back to the November break.
Nottingham Forest at home in Gameweek 25 should be more to Leeds’ liking, as stubborn as Sean Dyche has made them.
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