In the international break which ended just a week ago, Arsenal faced a major blow as Bukayo Saka got injured. Firstly, it was looking like the injury is not serious and Saka will make it in time. But, the young winger has already missed 2 matches and still has not trained.
Saka missed the Premier League game against Bournemouth which ended in a 2-0 defeat. He then missed the UCL fixture against Shakhtar Donetsk in which Gunners did emerge victorious, but were only able to score 1 goal and that too was own goal from Shakhtar.
Mikel Arteta said after the match that Saka was not able to train. He added that it is unlikely that the 23 year old will start against Liverpool. Gunners have already felt the absence of their star player and hence may struggle against table toppers.
Arsenal really struggling without Bukayo Saka
Gunners have played last two matches without Saka. They have only been able to score 1 goal in those two matches, and the only goal scored is still not from one of the stars. While Saka was always there to assist or score or create chances, Arsenal fans are really experiencing his absence.
Against Bournemouth, Gunners only had 1 shot on target out of the 6 total shots. They were able to create only 2 chances but unfortunately failed to capitalize on both of them. Their passing accuracy was also less than the hosts despite having the more ball control.
Some may say that Gunners struggled because they were reduced to 10 men in the opening 30 minutes. This maybe true but it does not change the fact that Gunners depend on Saka a lot. It can be seen from their yesterday’s match against Shakhtar Donetsk.
Despite playing at home, Gunners only had 5 shots on target. They were able to create 3 big chances but once again failed to capitalize on any of them. This time they did had 90% passing accuracy but were certainly less clinical. All stats as per FOTMOB.
There is a noticable difference between how Arsenal are with and without Bukayo Saka. It can also be said that these are two different teams. Arsenal fans will hope that Saka recovers soon and hopefully plays against Liverpool.
A trusted source on GoonerNews.comFor more football updates, make sure to follow us on:
