Bukayo Saka was forced to sit out Arsenal's win over Luton Town on Wednesday evening
Bukayo Saka in action for Arsenal(Image credit: Getty Images)
Arsenal will have the chance to move back to the top of the Premier League on Saturday evening when they visit Brighton in a 5.30pm kick-off.
With all three title contenders winning again in midweek, the Gunners will look to wrestle back the initiative before current leaders Liverpool visit Manchester United on Sunday afternoon. Manchester City visit Crystal Palace in Saturday’s early kick-off, as fans of all three sides brace themselves for the latest batch of twists and turns in what is developing into one of the best title races in recent seasons.
Injuries will be key in the coming weeks, with Arsenal having to take Bukayo Saka out of the firing line for the 2-0 win over Luton Town on Wednesday evening after he had been forced off early against Man City last weekend.
Will Bukayo Saka be fit enough to play for Arsenal against Brighton on Saturday?
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta (Image credit: Getty Images)
The issue of Saka's fitness was high on the agenda when Mikel Arteta faced the media to preview his side's trip to the south coast on Friday morning.
The Gunners boss said that he would use Friday's training session to see if the England man will be fit enough to face the Seagulls.
"We will know with our training session in a few hours,” Aterta said in his pre-match press conference. “We will know whether he is fit or not."
Arteta also moved to dismiss any concerns that Saka was feeling the strain of a long season and at risk of burnout.
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“I’m super positive, I think he’s going to fly and be so decisive," he continued.
“Because he’s so strong, how much he wants it when you talk to him and how excited he is about what is coming, he wants to be there. He’s getting better and better and it’s normal to have little niggles. You have kicks and he’s gone through a lot of that in the last two or three years and look at the way he’s performing.”
For more than a decade Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor, with stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others. He is the author of four football history books that include tomes on Leeds United and the England national team.
