Shock Arsenal transfer decision to pay off immediately as Bukayo Saka set for new role

Arsenal have been handed a number of significant setbacks in the last two weeks ahead of their upcoming Premier League clash against Tottenham. The latest North London Derby will be contested at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Mikel Arteta faces a number of huge decisions in the build up to the clash.

In their most recent league outing against Brighton, Declan Rice was sent off and will subsequently be suspended. That major blow came just a few days after new signing Mikel Merino picked up a shoulder injury in training with his debut now unlikely to arrive until early November.

Club captain Martin Odegaard has since suffered an injury of his own which is expected, at the very least, to keep him out of Sunday’s game, the Champions League trip to Atalanta and the clash against Manchester City seven days later. With so many key players missing, it is certainly time for a number of stars to step up to the plate.

Bukayo Saka is Arsenal’s talisman and he will be needed again over the next three games with Arteta set to hand him a brand new role. Raheem Sterling may also be required sooner than expected with attackers like Kai Havertz and Leandro Trossard also able to cover for absences in midfield.

Sterling transfer decision immediately proven right

Many were left surprised on deadline day by the decision to bring in Raheem Sterling on a season-long loan from Chelsea, however it looks to have already been vindicated. With so many players missing in one position, those on the fringes are about to become very important.

The Gunners will play matches in three different competitions this month and thus Arteta will need to rotate his squad which will inevitably mean plenty of minutes for Sterling.

football.london says: “Given the nature of Sterling’s arrival, it was already a smart decision to bring him in, even before Arsenal’s injury crisis came to fruition.

“The Gunners have added a very good attacker to their squad and the move is absolutely risk-free. If it does not work out, he will simply return to Stamford Bridge but if he does thrive, Arsenal will reap the rewards and could move to sign him permanently in the summer.

“In training, Sterling has been deployed on the right but it is possible he can be used all over the attack with Arteta keen to have versatile players in his squad. Trossard is usually Gabriel Martinelli’s cover but the latter may be needed in midfield and thus Sterling has the chance to be deployed on both flanks and attempt to immediately repay Arteta’s faith.”

New role for Saka

With captain Martin Odegaard expected to be absent and former vice-captain Granit Xhaka no longer at the club, Bukayo Saka will likely lead his boyhood club into battle against their biggest rivals.

Gabriel Jesus or Jorginho, if they start, could alternatively take on the armband, though Saka is usually given the responsibilities if Odegaard is subbed off and he is still on.