All the latest on Bukayo Saka and his Arsenal return.All the latest on Bukayo Saka and his Arsenal return.
All the latest on Bukayo Saka and his Arsenal return. | Getty Images
Bukayo Saka could make his long-awaited return to Arsenal action after the international break.
Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka could return from his lengthy hamstring injury after the international break in a welcome boost for Mikel Arteta and the Gunners.
The England international required an operation after picking up the hamstring problem in a 5-1 win over Crystal Palace in December. Saka has not played since that match in a period which has seen Arsenal lose to West Ham in the Premier League, Manchester United in the FA Cup and Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup.
Arteta’s side have also dropped points against the Red Devils, Brighton, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest in the league with a lack of firepower, not helped by other injuries to Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz. Speaking last week, the Arsenal boss said that Saka was making ‘very good progress’ and Arteta provided a further update after the 1-0 win over Chelsea on Sunday.
Bukayo Saka has ‘good chance’ of returning after international break
When asked if Saka could return to action in April, he said: "Yes, he's got a good chance. He is going to be here [at the Arsenal training ground], hopefully more with the ball at his feet than he has had. That will mean he is passing the ball and shooting and running and everything. He has done quite a lot already on the pitch working on his own.
"Next we need to arrange it with people around him in a more competitive training session and see how he goes with that. He's getting closer, he's stepping up and making very good progress, I would say. So let's see when we start to throw him in with the team how he reacts and how fit he can get quickly."
Arsenal are next in action on April 1 when Fulham make the trip to the Emirates Stadium. There’s then an away fixture at Everton on April 5. Saka could, crucially, be fit again to face Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final - that competition remains the North London club’s last realistic chance of silverware this season.
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News of Saka’s upcoming return comes as the BBC reports that Arsenal are preparing to open ‘formal talks’ with the player over a new contract as he approaches the final two years of his deal. The club hope to avoid any uncertainty over the winger’s future and want to update his last deal, which was signed in 2022 and is understood to be worth £10 million per season.
Former England manager Gareth Southgate has also been speaking about the injured Arsenal player this week. When talking at the BBC’s annual Richard Dimbleby Lecture, Southgate said: “I smile as soon as I see his name, who after his experience in Euro 2020, displayed quite remarkable resilience, courage, and belief in stepping up to successfully score his penalty against Switzerland last summer.”
In other news, this is how Arsenal fare in a new look Premier League table without VAR against top flight rivals Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham after last weekend’s Goodison Park controversy.