Bukayo Saka will make his long-awaited return from injury, having been sidelined with a hamstring problem sustained in Arsenal’s 5-1 win against Crystal Palace back in December.
The 23-year-old is “ready to go” according to Mikel Arteta and is in contention to start as soon as tomorrow night against Fulham.
“All the careful things he’s already done, so now it's about putting him in the grass at the right moment. He’s pushing because he really wants it. We have to respect the time frame, but we have done everything and we even hold him back."
Youngster Ethan Nwaneri has done a great job deputising in Saka’s role in his absence, but the winger’s return to the matchday squad will be a huge boost for the Gunners, ahead of their clash against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final.
“It’s another massive weapon that we have. We know the impact that he’s had on the team and how important his role and his contribution is to our success, so it is great to have him back.”
Despite missing more than three months, the England international is still joint-second for the most assists in the Premier League (10) and has 22 goal contributions for Arsenal.
Arteta spoke about the positive ‘energy that he transmits’ even from the sidelines, but now he is back training with the squad, and he can have a bigger influence in the buildup to facing Los Blancos in April.
“He’s missed the thing that he loves the most in his life, which is to be around the team, to play, to train and to compete at the highest level. The fact he’s able to come in the most important part of the season obviously is a massive boost for him and the team as well."
However, Arteta has no concerns about whether Saka can make an instant impact on his return, comparing his forward’s situation using a fascinating analogy of a housekeeper to support his thought process.
He added: “You haven’t played for three months, but you’ve played for the last 48 months, so three in 48 is a very small percentage. I haven’t done the housekeeping duties for a week, but I’ve done it for 10 years, so I know what to do, I know how to sustain it, and I’m clever enough to maintain that. The habit is certainly there, so don’t think about that.”
While Saka’s return is undoubtedly positive news, Arsenal did face a few setbacks in the international break, including another injury for Riccardo Calafiori.
The Italy international had a nasty slip in the final minutes of their match against Germany and immediately returned to London for assessment.
Jurrien Timber also played no part in the Netherlands’ Nations League fixtures against Spain, struggling with an illness for the duration of the international break.
“Riccardo, unfortunately, picked up an injury again with the national team. It was really unfortunate, the way that it happened, but it could’ve been much worse. Hopefully, it’s going to be a matter of weeks, but we’ll have to see how that injury evolves.
“Jurrien was ill for a long period, quite badly. He’s felt much better in the last few days, so he’s available,” Arteta said.
As for tomorrow’s opposition, Arteta conceded that Fulham are always a “really tough opposition to play against.”
“[They are a] team that is very well coached. They’ve been together for many years, they have great organisation, a lot of individual quality and a very clear identity of how they play, how they want to approach the games, especially against us. So we’re going to have to be really good tomorrow to beat them.”
In the reverse fixture at Craven Cottage, Fulham found an early opener on the break through Raul Jimenez. They proceeded to sit back and deploy a low block against the Gunners, but that was foiled by William Saliba, scoring from a corner. Arsenal believed they had done enough to take all three points in the 88th minute when Bukayo Saka nodded home from close range, but VAR caught an offside infringement, dealing a huge title blow for the visitors.
Asked about what he had learnt from the fixture, Arteta responded: “We had a lot of dominance and quite a lot of chances, both in open play and set-pieces-wise. But they were very clinical in what they did and the first chance, especially when we were on top of the game, they managed to score the goal. Then, they sit back and reduce the spaces. It’s a team that is well-organised.”
Tomorrow night may be a different story. While Arsenal weren’t at their best against Chelsea in the final match before the break, they were dominant and had a lot of chances. With Saka back in the fold, the chances could quickly turn into goals and generate momentum before their upcoming European fixtures.