IBL Cos we'd like him to last the whole season and not play in dead rubber or wrapped up games.

Which is completely fair, especially when you see him hobbling around the last twenty minutes of games. But for all of our worrying about him, and his hobbling, he's usually available to start for us. I do think we maybe worry about this stuff a little too much, especially given his track record. I think we have to trust Arteta's judgement with him a little more, after all he will have far more information than we ever will.

And it is true that for all the talk of how he's been relatively quiet this season, his "relatively quiet" is still winning us matches on the regular.

Completely agree that he should be kept away from dead rubber type situations mind.

  • IBL replied to this.

      Anyone think Saka fakes these limps at the end of games to make the next team we face not sure if he plays or not?

      Sorry, I've just remembered how many soft tissue injuries we've ended up with with Arteta in charge. Ignore what I said about trusting him! 🤣

      It’s not the hobbling around only. He (and some others) were also completely ineffective at the end of last season and it’s hard not to think that if was related to being overplayed

        FEBravo yeah, also fair. I do think though, certainly this season - as alluded to - he's pacing himself better this season. We've not often seen him flat out. So maybe part of his growth is him learning how to get through the season and peaking at the right time. We shall see - in about seven months...

          RocktheCasbah I do think we maybe worry about this stuff a little too much, especially given his track record. I think we have to trust Arteta's judgement with him a little more, after all he will have far more information than we ever will.

          I get that but worry that we're sometimes riding our luck and with the way he plays and draws foul it just takes one Dan Smith, Shawcross or Taylor and he's out for the season. Just feels risky leaving him on for the full 90 if we're comfortably ahead.

              IBL Just feels risky leaving him on for the full 90 if we're comfortably ahead.

              Oh, 100%.

                IBL
                " Dan Smith, Shawcross or Taylor and he's out for the season."

                that's definitely not what I'm worried about with Saka because those kind of things can happen to anyone at anytime in the game. the only way to prevent those assaults is to not play the game.

                    Meatwad that's true, but IBL is talking about minimising unnecessary exposure to such tackles and therefore the risk of them happening. It's pretty hard to two foot Saka out of a game, month, season if he's sitting on the bench, having a rest with us 4-0 up.

                    • IBL likes this.

                      Meatwad

                      Nah mate as RtC has said the point is that there are certain games (e.g. carabao game cup against a really weak team) and or certain sections of a game (e.g. last 30 minutes against Luton having already scored 4 goals) that don't require Saka.

                      • Tam replied to this.
                      • IBL likes this.

                          AAStyle For far more reasons than just the ability to reduce Saka's workload. Morale, sharpness, relationships, chemistry, confidence. All things that would benefit from 20-30 minutes at the end of the game rather than the token 3-4 minutes that some are given.

                              IBL

                              He lasted the whole of last season, he also lasted the whole of the season before that and the season before that too.

                              Saka is one of the fittest and most reliable players we have in the team. Instead of celebrating this fact, it's used as a stick to beat Arteta with.

                              There is absolutely no evidence to show that he is playing any more football than his peers. In fact, we've been out of the CL for years and he's had the fortune of playing once a week for most of that period.

                              People have completely forgotten what the demands of top level football actually are, from Fabregas to Henry to Alexis Sanchez. These guys played twice a week for long stretches of the season. Saka has never broken 50 games in a season. Yet, people have been losing their shit over Saka long before he's ever been exposed to CL football.

                                Tam

                                Name one top level footballer who is the talisman of the team who gets treated this way.

                                Name just one.

                                Honestly, I would like to know, as I've never seen this attitude towards any other Arsenal player we've ever had.

                                  Burnwinter

                                  Obviously, a myriad of reasons, but I wasn't drawing attention to the difference in his season stats. But rather that he's fit and firing and people already want him constantly rotated or subbed off at halftime.🤣

                                  Meatwad

                                  That's getting more to the root cause of peoples concerns. People are afraid that he's going to get injured, and like you rightly said, that risk exists regardless. He might as well stop playing the game altogether.

                                        daredevil He might as well stop playing the game altogether.

                                        In that case, his lack of injuries wouldn't help us. In the case of resting him when he's not needed, a lack of injuries/deterioration of form would help us.

                                        Like mentioned above, it's also good for the squad players.

                                        Also weird to say that people want him constantly rotated when he's never rotated. That people always say they want him rotated while he isn't obviously does not mean they want him to always be rotated - if he was rotated a bit more they wouldn't say it.

                                            QuincyAbeyie

                                            People's deep rooted concerns about an injury risk aren't going to dissipate if he was rotated once, twice, or even thrice. He was taken off against PSV at the 70th minute a couple weeks ago, and no less than two weeks later, people were at it again asking to sub him off at half time, hell some even wanted him on the bench during the pre-match talk.

                                            At the end of the day, it's very likely, and I said as much last season, that he will play more football this season than ever before. You know, like your Haaland's and Salah's and all other top level CL footballers.

                                            If you don't think Saka is capable, then fair enough, but Arteta seems to think he is and treats him as much.

                                              Okay, so you think people want him rested and fringe players to get minutes when we don't need Saka because they don't rate him highly. Good to know when I consider replying to posts about this subject in the future.

                                              Edit: The post said "If you don't rate Saka highly enough to think he is capable" when I replied.