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Bukayo Saka Set To Be Sidelined For ‘Multiple Weeks’

Bukayo Saka is an English professional footballer who has been the main player for the Arsenal football club for quite a while now. The English star’s involvement in numerous games in recent seasons has caused Arsenal fans to worry about his fitness and whether the player would get burned out too early in his career, but nothing serious has materialised. However, this changed when Bukayo Saka picked up an injury in a Premier League game against Crystal Palace on 21st December 2024. This article talks about Saka’s injury and how it will affect Arsenal going forward.

Bukayo Saka Out For Many Weeks

Credit: Goal.com

Bukayo Saka injured his hamstring against Crystal Palace and was subbed off in the 24th minute of the game. While the extent of the injury was not revealed initially, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta later reported that Saka would be out for many weeks. This is a massive blow for Arsenal, which had become largely dependent on the English star, with him being involved in the majority of attacks and goals.

Initial assessments suggest that Saka may be sidelined for approximately 4 to 6 weeks. Such a prognosis would mean he could miss crucial fixtures, including several important Premier League matches and possibly some cup games. Arsenal aims for a top-four finish and maybe even challenge for the title while pushing for silverware, and Saka’s absence will be felt deeply. The Christmas period is known for being extremely congested, and this is the worst time for Saka to get injured. These runs of fixtures may end up being vital to Arsenal’s season, and coping without a star player may turn out to be a difficult task for Arsenal.

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In Saka’s absence, Arteta has several options. The most obvious choice might be Leandro Trossard, who has shown versatility as both a winger and an attacking midfielder. While the Belgian star is used to playing on the left flank, Arsenal may have no choice but to deploy him as a replacement for Bukayo Saka. While the Gunners have players like Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz, and Mikel Merino at their disposal, none of them is really suited to playing on the wing and with Raheem Sterling being injured, Trossard seems to be the only viable replacement for Saka.

🔴⚪️ Arteta on replacing Saka out for weeks: “I’m putting some ideas together, we will be doing new things as we did when Ødegaard was out”.

“Gabi has played there, Nwaneri and Trossard… also Havertz can play there. We will talk internally and see what’s the best solution”. pic.twitter.com/n9LRbSraXT

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 23, 2024

This injury to Bukayo Saka also highlights a point that both players and managers have been vocal about since the start of the season: fixture congestion. Both managers and players have complained that there are too many fixtures too close together in the current format and that this needs to change, or the load on the players will be too much to handle. This kind of excessive load can cause serious injuries to players, and people are furious that the associations are not doing anything to protect the players but are instead just increasing the games so that more revenue comes in and they make more profit.

If something is not done about this fixture congestion, more players, like Bukayo Saka, will keep getting injured. These injuries can cause a lot of problems in the careers of such players. While Saka is expected back in four to six weeks, no one knows how the injury will affect him in the future. All this aside, Arsenal will simply hope to have their star player return safe and sound as soon as possible. One thing is certain: Arsenal should make sure they do not rush Saka to return to fitness and that they let him take as much time as needed to recuperate to full fitness before he steps on the field.

For more news and updates on Bukayo Saka, keep reading GutshotMagazine.com. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Telegram.

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