Paul Merson just named Bukayo Saka as the best winger in the world right now, which, as a devoted Arsenal fan, I believe was the wrong answer.
As Saka just committed his prime years to Arsenal, there’s not a lot the winger can do wrong in N5.
There is, however, a debate to be had regarding whether he is a world-class player just yet or not, which is where Merson’s latest comments become very interesting.
After Theo Walcott said Saka is the world’s third-best winger, Merson told The Overlap’s TikTok channel that he believes Saka is the best.
Merson went all Arsenal when it came to saying who the best goalkeeper, defender, midfielder and winger are, naming David Raya, Gabriel Magalhaes, Declan Rice and Saka.
With that said, in my opinion, his claim about Saka needs to be addressed.
Answer honestly: Is Bukayo Saka really the best winger in the world right now?
Bukayo Saka is not the best winger in the world right now, despite Paul Merson’s opinion
I think Gabriel is the best defender in the world, and I think Rice has proven that he’s the best midfielder at present.
Raya has competition to be the world’s best, and so does Saka, with the winger’s position in the rankings the more debatable.
Merson’s explanation for choosing Saka as the world’s best winger was, “Probably Saka for [being] robust and everything.”
He’s right that Saka is robust, and sure, to Arsenal, he is everything, but when looking at wingers elsewhere, there’s a goal contribution-shaped elephant in the room.
AGREE or DISAGREE: Bukayo Saka is NOT a SUPERSTAR at Arsenal?
I personally do not believe that an attacking player can be dubbed the world’s best with five league goals to their name.
Goals aren’t the only measurement of success, but they’re the most decisive indicator of calibre, and right now, Saka is nowhere near the level he needs to be at.
So, let’s take a look at some of the best-performing wingers in Europe, and how they compare to Saka.
The Bundesliga is an easier league to play in than the Premier League, granted, but you can’t ignore what Michael Olise is doing for Bayern Munich when discussing the current best wide players.
Olise has 26 goal contributions in the Bundesliga alone, which blows Saka’s eight contributions out of the water.
The same can be said for Olise’s teammate, Luis Diaz (23 contributions) and, over in Spain, Lamine Yamal, who has 10 goals and nine assists in La Liga thus far.
Fill the blanks, Bukayo Saka should be scoring __ goals a season at Arsenal.
Some fans will argue that Saka comes up against a different level of opposition in the English top flight, but that makes the best in the world comment more compelling.
Based on goal output, the best winger in the Premier League, by a long stretch, is Antoine Semenyo, who has 17 league goal contributions.
So, while Merson was eager to crown Saka the world’s best, there’s just no way that his opinion is feasible, as for all the love I, and many others, have for Saka, five goals in 24 appearances is closer to a disaster than the very best.
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