Arsenal face fresh injury concerns after Bukayo Saka was forced off after an innoucous incident against Bayern Munich.
Bukayo Saka immediately signalled to the bench with a worrying injury.
Bukayo Saka had to subbed off after just nine minutes against Bayern Munich(Image: HBO Max)
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Arsenal star Bukayo Saka was forced off after just nine minutes with a suspected quad injury. The England international immediately went to ground after playing a pass during their Champions League showdown with Bayern Munich and called for the physio.
The incident occurred in the opening exchanges between the two European juggernauts. Saka was able to run at Alphonso Davies for the first time, in what looked to be an intriguing battle between the two, but after cutting back and moving inside to play a pass, he immediately fell down holding his left thigh.
There was no real pressure on the Arsenal winger after losing the Canadian international, but the manner of the problem poses a real worry for Mikel Arteta. Martin Odegaard and Jurien Timber knew straight away about the problem as they signalled for the ball to go out of play, with Saka immediately gesturing to the bench for treatment.
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Broadcast pictures show the 25-year-old stricken on the floor with both hands on his head, with Ebere Eze subsequently replacing him. The forward was helped off the pitch, but the concerned look and despondent puff of the cheeks from Saka may point to a bigger problem for the Gunners.
TNT Sports pundit Ally McCoist was immediately left concerned and posed the worrying question of a long-term layoff for Saka. He said: "He's gone down there. I tell you, I think he's struggling Saka. I tell you, that's a bad one.
"It's a bad one, he went down straight away. I don't know if it's a hamstring or a calf. There you go, is it a thigh?"
Saka went down making a pass and immediately called for treatment
Saka went down making a pass and immediately called for treatment
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Co-commentator Steven Gerrard highlighted the opportunity facing Saka's replacement, Eze, and whether he could use his involvement last time out as fuel to inspire Arsenal.
The former Liverpool midfielder said: "I think it could be a quad, you saw him grab is right away. I think you're right Ally. Seems to me like he's tried to clip one over the top and it's clipped his toe, the contacts not quite there. It's a huge blow for Arsenal.
"This is one of those moments as a manager, where sometimes you take a player off at half-time and it comes back and bites you very quickly.
"It's a good test for Eze, we'll see what type of mentality and character he is. I'm sure he would have been disappointed coming off but the best players use that as fuel."
Eze did just that, netting the opener inside half an hour after the Englishman breached the Bayern offside trap before powering a volley home.
There will be an anxious wait over the fitness of Saka, who has three goals in seven Premier League outings this season, with Arsenal looking to push Manchester City in their title defence.