Bukayo Saka celebrates Arsenal's second goal in their 2-1 win over Nottingham Forest. Photo: Reuters/David Klein. — Premier League 23/24 — Arsenal v Nottingham Forest
Bukayo Saka is entering his fifth season as an Arsenal regular, a key player in the England squad and so much of his club's star — no matter who arrives — that it's easy to forget that he was still eligible to play at the European Under-21 Championship this summer.
He won't turn 22 until next month, and while so much has changed in the era of Mikel Arteta, Saka's credibility remains unshakable. He is the man who can most reliably turn a game with brilliance, and that happened again with his first-half goal that left-footed Matt Turner. Nottingham Forest were well aware of this run from the right — there was simply nothing they could do to stop it.
Saka ended last season with amazing form, finishing with a hat-trick for England against North Macedonia. His 14 league goals were the best in history and his contribution continues to grow. However, he will have to score a lot more in this Arsenal team if they want to seriously challenge for the title.
Gabriel Jesus is out of shape again. Kai Havertz looks like the man looking for a role in this adapted version of Arsenal for the 2023/24 season. Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard also equaled Saka with 15 goals in all competitions last season, but neither looks like a more reliable scorer than a left-footed right-hander. Saka can't play like a typical scorer. However, he looks like Arsenal's main hope of scoring those goals.
Arsenal are chasing defending champions Manchester City, for whom Erling Haaland scored 52 goals in all competitions last season, plus three of his teammates have scored 15 or more goals. Perhaps it will be Jesus, when he is in good shape, who will come forward. All instincts suggest that this is most likely to be Saka.
So far, Arsenal have directed resources to other areas, mainly to Declan Rice, for whom it was a neat home debut, albeit with two chances to score that he missed. . When asked if Saka was ready to raise his level of performance again, Arteta was cautious. He will know that he requires a lot from a very young player, although Arsenal need a lot. Much falls on the broad shoulders of this bright young football player.
Club record holder Declan Rice (left) points out that Eddie Nketiah scored Arsenal's first goal. Photo: Reuters/David Klein
“I ask all players to be the best version of themselves,” Arteta said. “That's all they can do. How good this version [is] is, it's very hard to tell any player because we don't know Bukayo from two years ago or two years from now, what he will be like. The same applies to the rest. They are so eager to do this every single day. When that happens, they will surely improve, they will compete better and understand the game better to make better decisions.”
Saka will look at this Arsenal squad and surely recognize its great strength, but how Arteta uses it on the pitch is another matter. It was like his first draft. He tore apart last year's central defensive alliance between William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães, leaving the latter on the bench and bringing in right-back Ben White. Thomas Parti started out as a right-back, but after a few minutes it became apparent that he was a right-back, basically in the way that Pep Guardiola now sees the role.
The role of the new right-back is a two-man job done by one: John Stones, Trent Alexander-Arnold and now Partey, who must step out of his usual job and move into midfield. A risky strategy that is sure to interest opposing coaches who think they can use it with quick transitions. Forest might think that's exactly what they did in the second half when Anthony Elanga made a great run down Arsenal's right flank and crossed on his substitute Taiwo Avonia, who scored a goal that suddenly made the home side uncomfortable.
In the end, Saki and Eddie Nketiah's goals were enough, but it once again suggested that Arteta felt he had to take risks to make progress. The Arsenal manager was forced to replace newcomer Yourrien Timber after what appeared to be a major injury, but Arteta dismissed her as such. Arteta said that Nketiah's abrupt finish was the justification for his inclusion. After replacing Nketiah in the Community Shield, Arteta put it this way. «The way he trained this week,» Arteta said, «was saying, 'Grandpa, if you don't play with me, you're blind.'
Steve Cooper said his game improved after he recalled at half-time that they needed to play much better and the pressure they put on Arsenal at the end showed how far they had come. He urged his club to make some progress on signings, which have been slow so far, in stark contrast to last summer's frantic activity. Arsenal. They looked solid, but there's more to come and Arteta will have to quickly learn how to make the best use of those at his disposal.
Lineups — Premier League 23/24 — Arsenal v Nottingham Forest
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