Arsenal’s start to the current season has not been easy on the injury front with a whole host of names ruled out for small to large periods of time.
Martin Odegaard has been the main patient on the treatment table over the opening month or so of the new campaign with the Norwegian having sustained significant damage to his ankle ligament during the last international break.
Oleksandr Zinchenko has also been absent while Ben White has endured time with the team doctors at London Colney too. With Jurrien Timber also missing against Southampton last weekend, it meant that Thomas Partey had to play at right-back. He did an admirable job to be fair to him.
But there’s one player who continues to soldier on despite a lack of rest. That man is Bukayo Saka.
Bukayo Saka injury claim
One of the biggest priorities for Arsenal over the last few years has been the need to sign a new right winger.
Saka is their star boy, he’s their number one man, and he’s their most important player. As a result, he’s likely to play a high volume of minutes. Mikel Arteta needs him on the pitch at all times and at all costs.
The arrival of Raheem Sterling on loan from Chelsea over the summer should help but even then, Saka still played against Bolton Wanderers in the League Cup with his England colleague favoured on the left.
That felt like an ideal opportunity to rest the 23-year-old, alas he was kept on the field as the Gunners eased into the next round at the expense of the Trotters.
Arteta probably knows more than anyone that Saka could do with more rest periods and now he’s been given a huge warning over the direction that his star winger’s career could head in.
Research conducted by OLBG concludes that his career could head in the direction of someone like Michael Owen or Dele Alli if Arsenal aren’t careful.
According to said research, the England international has already played 52.9% of his projected career minutes at the age of 23. If we compare that to Phil Foden who is a year older, he has been more carefully managed and has only played 33.2% of his projected minutes.
Phil Foden vs Bukayo Saka in 2023/24
Saka’s injury record is rather impressive compared to his peers, with a ratio of 355 minutes played per day injured.
Referring back to the aforementioned Owen, he had a rate of 39 minutes played per day injured as the former Ballon d’Or winner ultimately saw his career burn out.
Gerrard
19,861
97
Lampard
15,793
88
Rooney
20,415
153
Dele
20,068
155
Owen
17,643
179
Foden
17,447
28
Saka *
19,536
15
Rashford
19,707
50
Trent
23,312
62
Sterling
18,792
58
As it happens the Arsenal star has played an average of 3,595 minutes per season and has already played more minutes in his first six seasons than Owen and Dele. Considering both players suffered from early-career burnout and injuries, Saka’s heavy workload could come back to bite him.
The research comes to a shocking verdict if you are of an Arsenal persuasion that we could start to see a significant drop-off in the forward’s career numbers in two years. That would happen to mark his eighth year at the highest level of the game and a crucial period in Arteta’s project as they look to make themselves consistent Premier League and Champions League contenders.
As a result, Arsenal must prepare for the future and ensure the Hale End star’s minutes are managed. They could do so by signing a new winger in 2025.
Wingers Arsenal could sign in 2025
Sterling’s future at Arsenal is unlikely to be long-term so acquiring a major signing in attack over the next year or so should be at the height of Arsenal’s agenda.
One option could be Barcelona winger Raphinha. The Gunners were interested in snapping the Brazilian up when he was still at Leeds but he preferred a move to the Catalan giants.
Michael Olise and Pedro Neto had previously been options but they signed for Bayern Munich and Chelsea respectively over the summer so won’t be on the market.
Thus, they could turn their attention to someone like Napoli’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia or Athletic Bilbao’s Nico Williams who has been of huge interest to Arteta and Co for a while now.
Possessing a £49m release clause, signing the Spaniard would be smart business. Although predominantly a left winger, he has operated on the right and would provide phenomenal competition for places among the likes of Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard.
Arsenal have been sent a warning here and they must ensure that the club’s dazzling number 7 is given more rest and competition.
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