Bukayo Saka’s season has been one of the more quietly debated topics around Arsenal this year.
The numbers have not been at the level supporters have come to expect.
Seven league goals in 31 appearances, 12 goals and assists combined in the Premier League — that’s not a bad return.
But for a player of Bukayo Saka’s calibre, you want more.
At one point, he endured a spell of 15 games without a goal before breaking his drought against Wolves in February.
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Joe Cole has offered a nuanced take on Saka’s struggles.
Joe Cole has noticed Bukayo Saka has become a leader at Arsenal
Speaking on The Dressing Room, the former England midfielder acknowledged that Saka has not been at his sharpest, but identified something important that has developed in its place.
“I think Saka needs to get back to his best. Let’s give him that,” Cole said. “He’s certainly not at his best at the moment. He’s had injuries and he’s done a great job.
“I think what he has done this year, to give him his props — he’s become a leader. He looks like he’s locked into what Mikel Arteta wants him to do.
“But he’s less effective in the final third than he was a couple of years ago.”
It is a fair and honest assessment. Saka has played 312 games for Arsenal and accumulated more minutes this season than last, all while managing three separate injury setbacks.
Do you think Bukayo Saka will break David O’Leary’s Arsenal record of 722 appearances?
He had a hamstring problem early in the campaign and a hip issue in January that ruled him out for a few games, before aggravating an Achilles tendon problem in the Carabao Cup final.
Bukayo Saka’s dip in form is understandable
It is worth noting that the right side of Arsenal’s attack has been severely disrupted with injuries all season.
Captain Martin Odegaard managed just 16 league starts due to a series of knee and shoulder problems.
Ben White has also struggled to stay fit, while Jurrien Timber’s own injury issues at the back end of the season further unsettled the balance.
Saka’s natural combinations with Odegaard and White — the fluid, instinctive movements that made Arsenal’s right side so dangerous — have rarely been available to him consistently.
His underlying numbers also suggest he has been somewhat unlucky. Expected assists metrics indicate he should have contributed one more goal and two more assists than his actual tally.
He was also far-and-away Arsenal’s best chance creator from open play over the course of the season (46).
In the Champions League final, some reckon Saka was trying too hard to make something happen, possibly due to pressure. Wayne Rooney also noticed that strain earlier in the season.
Cole is right about Saka’s growth in leadership though. The vice-captain signed a new five-year deal in February and is unambiguously Arsenal’s franchise player.
And he is more willing to do the unglamorous work of Arteta’s system than other wingers in his category would be. That will naturally have a negating effect on his numbers short-term.
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