8 months ago
56
BUKAYO SAKA has been left out of the Arsenal squad to face Luton Town.
The winger was forced off with injury against Manchester City in the 78th minute.
Alamy
GettyAfter the game Mikel Arteta revealed Saka was not actually injured but was instead taken off due to fatigue.
But Saka will play no part against the Hatters tonight with Arteta providing an update on his fitness.
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The Arsenal boss said: “Bukayo Saka had to come off against City three days ago feeling something and he hasn’t been able to do everything that we needed to give him the chance to start the game”.
“So we have decided not to play him.”
Declan Rice and Gabriel Jesus also drop to the bench as the Gunners look to rest key players ahead of a packed schedule.
Arsenal have seven games to play in the next 20 days including a Champions League tie against Bayern Munich.
Saka has missed just one game this season, the home win over City, while Rice has featured in every fixture.
He was also absent for England’s games against Brazil and Belgium over the recent international break.
Mikel Arteta has made a number of changes to the teamI used to give Declan Rice compliments on the football pitch… I couldn’t help myself, says Troy Deeney
By Troy Deeney
THERE are certain people that you come across in football and you know instantly who they are, what they’re about and what the trajectory of their life is going to be.
Anyone who has worked or grown up with Declan Rice knows that he has always been destined for the top.
When he was at West Ham, he was a centre-half who played in midfield purely to help out and ended up excelling.
The way he used to listen and learn from his old captain Mark Noble and be a student of the game was second to none.
And because of that, whenever I interacted with him on a football pitch, I never felt the need to be disrespectful towards him because there was just a pure will to win.
We would tell each other to ‘do one’ every now and again but then I would get these weird moments when he would do something special and I couldn’t help but say, ‘Good touch, mate’.
He had this joyful atmosphere around him which you can see in all of his interviews, even now at Arsenal. You never see him get in trouble, being outlandish, but he has that jokey personality.
He is still quite kiddish at 25, yet with a very serious body and mind in terms of being the best player he can be.
When he was announced as England captain against Belgium, there was no outrage, no shock or surprise or, ‘Why him?’. It was more a sense of, ‘Yeah, that makes sense’.
There is no doubt in my mind that he is in line to take the armband for his country full-time after Harry Kane moves on, alongside his midfield partner Jude Bellingham.
Click here to read Troy Deeney’s column in full.
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Saka being sidelined offers the chance for others to impress with Emile Smith Rowe earning a rare start.
Reiss Nelson also makes the starting line-up for the first time in the Premier League this season, with Leandro Trossard also coming in.
Thomas Partey replaces Rice while Smith Rowe will likely play centrally alongside Martin Odegaard.
Jorginho is another player who has been rested as Oleksandr Zinchenko comes into the side in place of Jakub Kiwior.
Bengali (BD) · 
English (US) ·