Saka answers doubts with an increasingly dangerous goal threat

Is Saka struggling? The question captures the doubts around him, but the broader picture is that the winger has become a greater threat in front of goal. Against Lille, coming off the bench, he scored six minutes after providing an assist with his first touch. At 25, he showed he was willing to take on the near-impossible target set by Arteta: scoring “two or three goals per game”.

Asked whether his comments had provided motivation, the Arsenal manager replied: “If that's the case, I'm very happy and I welcome it.” He also revealed that he had joked with Saka about “killing him” in his press conference before Tuesday’s game. Saka’s goal against Lille, swept in after Kai Havertz’s cut-back, was his third this season from inside or just outside the six-yard box.

That finish carried added significance after Saka missed one-on-one opportunities against Napoli and Leeds. Following the win over Leeds, Arteta put those misses in perspective: “If he misses the chance, so be it.” He said that creating more opportunities raised the likelihood of Saka scoring more, adding that the winger could easily have had another four or five goals by that point. “He has been getting into great positions, taking shots and scoring with one-touch finishes and tap-ins,” Arteta added.

Position swaps with Havertz, alongside renewed combinations with Martin Odegaard, are giving Saka more time in central areas between the posts. Arteta has described those changes as a source of unpredictability. Only Thierno Barry and Erling Haaland, both specialist strikers, rank ahead of Saka for expected goals in this season’s Premier League. Gradient Sports also ranks him as the league’s best performer this season, using an assessment of execution quality rather than raw outcomes. Rob Berwald of Gradient Sports said Saka’s rating reflects his execution across a wide range of categories; the organisation also identifies his ability to resist tackles as a strength.

Saka is creating less than in previous years, but ranks among the top three for shots on target and touches in the penalty area. The numbers offer little cause for alarm, despite the unusually high standards applied to him. He had looked below his best against Leeds before his eye-catching cameo against Lille—a performance that underlined how his game is shifting towards a greater presence in front of goal.