Arsenal teenager Bukayo Saka starred for England yet again as he set up the Three Lions’ equaliser against Denmark yesterday.
Gareth Southgate’s men took the field looking to make history in front of 60,000 supporters. The Danes shocked Wembley by taking the lead through an outstanding free-kick from Mikkel Damsgaard.
It looked like one of those nights for England, but Southgate’s men stepped up, and Saka’s courage on the ball was just a joy to watch. Keown absolutely loved the fact that the Arsenal youngster didn’t hide after his side went down. He stepped up, and thanks to him, England got back into the game.
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Martin Keown: Bukayo Saka didn’t hide after Denmark scored
The Arsenal legend wrote in his column on The Daily Mail: “England conceded their first goal of this competition and needed to show character to get back into the game. That courage came from their youngest player in 19-year-old Bukayo Saka, and it justified Gareth Southgate’s selection of him over his competition for that right-sided position.
“Saka loves to run at his opponents. He will not be denied when he doesn’t want to be. Shortly before England’s equaliser, he burst down the right-wing and played a pass into Harry Kane, who fed Raheem Sterling. That shot was saved by Kasper Schmeichel.
“But then, moments later, Kane found Saka with a lovely ball in behind. The Arsenal youngster had made a very smart and well-timed run and he then played the pass which led to an own goal by Simon Kjaer. England were back in it.
“They’d found themselves in a losing position for the first time at Euro 2020. The pressure was on Southgate’s players. But Saka didn’t hide. He stood up, and he got his team back into the game with his energy down that right-hand side.”
The Insider’s View:
Saka really is unbelievable. For a 19-year-old to step up in the semi-final of the European championships and do what he did last night is just mind-blowing. He is a star already, and the scary thing is that he will only get better.
There were a few moans before the game about Saka replacing Jadon Sancho. The new Manchester United winger had a good game against Ukraine, and some felt that he deserved to keep his place ahead of the Arsenal man.
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However. Southgate decided to go with Saka and that paid off big time. The teenager was absolutely outstanding last night and he is now almost a guaranteed starter against Italy in the final on Sunday.
