Bukayo Saka just managed what no other Arsenal player has done since Alexis Sanchez

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Bukayo Saka looked refreshed as he found the back of the net in Arsenal’s victory over Nottingham Forest yesterday.

The 22-year-old suffered a dip in form prior to the winter break, amid concerns over his lack of rotation, but the break has served him well, and he looked back to his best at times at the City Ground.

Saka silenced boos from the home crowd as he found the back of the net to put Arsenal 2-0 up in the second half, and this goal not only proved to be the match winner, but was significant for several other reasons.

Despite receiving criticism for his output this season, Saka has now provided 23 goal and assist contributions in 29 games across all competitions, which is already close to matching last season’s total of 26 in 48 games.

Bukayo Saka matches Alexis Sanchez Arsenal accomplishment

His strike against Forest was his 10th goal of the campaign, whilst he has also notched up 13 assists.

This has meant that Saka has scored 10, whilst also assisting 10 in the same season, in back-to-back campaigns.

As per Opta, he is the first Arsenal player to achieve such a feat since Alexis Sanchez in the 2016-17 season, when the Chilean scored 30 and assisted 18 times in 51 games across all competitions, but Sanchez achieved his over the course of three seasons, not two.

Sanchez also scored in the FA Cup final against Chelsea in what was a stunning individual campaign, but a bittersweet one as Arsenal fell out of the top four for the first time in 20 years.

Can Bukayo Saka match Alexis Sanchez’s Arsenal records?

Although Sanchez could be frustrating at times, the forward’s output was often remarkable, and he scored 80 goals and provided 45 assists in 166 Arsenal games.

Sanchez often played through the middle, or would tuck inside as a winger, whilst Saka is not only double-marked by the opposition, but is also stuck on the touchlines a lot, making comparisons somewhat unfair, but he is well on his way to achieving similar levels of output.

The Chile International joined as an established star at Barcelona, whilst Saka emerged from Arsenal’s academy.

Saka has already made more appearances than Alexis, with 208 compared to his 166, and whilst he is behind in goals, with 48, he is already ahead in assists with 53.

A portion of Saka’s appearances came from the bench or at left-back when he first broke through, and beyond that, his level of output is currently elite.

He needs 20 goals and five assists in 22 to match Alexis’ best campaign overall, which he may not end up doing now, but Saka looks set to continually increase his output even when his overall performances are not at his usual high standard.