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Bukayo Saka has been out for three months with a serious hamstring injury (Picture: Getty)
Arsenal fans are breathing a collective sigh of relief after Bukayo Saka confirmed he had returned to training on Thursday.
Sak, 23, went down with a hamstring problem during Arsenal’s 5-1 win at Crystal Palace in December and Mikel Arteta’s worst fears were confirmed as it became clear the forward required surgery, ruling him out for three months.
The injury means Saka has missed the Gunners’ last 19 matches in all competitions, which came as a hammer blow to the club’s already dwindling Premier League title hopes.
Arteta has been desperately short of options in attack, with Mikel Merino deputising as a false nine in the absence of Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz – who are both sidelined for remainder of the season.
However, Saka has gradually stepped up his recovery in recent weeks and the England international will no doubt be desperate to play a key role in Arsenal’s two-legged Champions League quarter-final with Real Madrid.
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There are hopes Saka could even be involved in Arsenal’s upcoming league games against Fulham and Everton, though Arteta will want to wrap up his star man in cotton wool – with Europe’s premier competition now the club’s most realistic shot of silverware.
‘Hello again,’ Saka told his followers on Instagram, along with a photograph showing him beaming out on the grass at London Colney.
‘Working hard’ – Saka was pictured in training for the first time in three months (Picture: X/@Arsenal)
Just moments after Saka posted his update, Arsenal shared a short message of their own, reassuring supporters that the attacker had been ‘working hard’ back out on the training field again.
Saka joined the rest of Arteta’s first-team squad for their warm-weather training camp last month, but the winger only partook in light gym work in Dubai.
Before the international break, Arteta revealed that Saka was ramping up his rehabilitation and ‘getting closer’ to his return.
Arsenal Training Session
Saka stepped up his recovery in the gym in Dubai last month (Picture: Getty)
‘He is going to be here [at the Arsenal training ground], hopefully more with ball at his feet than he has had,’ the Spaniard told reporters.
‘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 a 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.’
More to follow.
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