Bukayo Saka marked his 200th Premier League appearance with a goal against West Ham, admitting he felt “tired but happy” as he continues to recover from injury ahead of England duty.
Bukayo Saka marked his 200th Premier League appearance with a goal and a reminder of why his presence matters so much to Mikel Arteta’s side, but the forward admitted that the milestone came after one of the most physically testing spells of his career.
Having missed four games earlier in the season with hamstring trouble, Saka looked close to his best again in the 2-0 win over West Ham, converting a second-half penalty to reach 100 goal involvements in the top flight.
“There’s a lot to celebrate – a beautiful win, another goal and 200 [Premier League] appearances as well,” Saka said. “So, happy days.
“I’m very proud, I don’t take these moments for granted, especially the last few months when I’ve had to miss games and watch from the stands as I’ve been injured. I’m going to enjoy it tonight and come back after the break ready to go again.”
It was also the first time since the opening weekend that Saka completed the full 90 minutes. Although he acknowledged he was feeling fatigued at the final whistle, his priority now is building fitness and avoiding any relapse as he rejoins Gareth Southgate’s England squad.
“I’m feeling good that I’ve got the 90 minutes out of the way now,” he said.
“Towards the end, I’m a bit tired if I’m honest, but that’s normal. But, yeah, I’m happy to get the 90 minutes in my legs and get a win and go away to England, because I’ve had to miss a lot of games for the national team too. So, I’m happy to be back there.”
While his record against West Ham remains his most prolific – five goals and four assists in the fixture – Saka’s focus after the game was on Arsenal’s form rather than his own stats. “We’ve had some really tough fixtures, some tough away fixtures,” he said. “But I think we can be happy with what we have now going into the break, and we’re in a strong position to come back and push on to the end of the season.”
His return to fitness is certainly welcome for Mikel Arteta who lost Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice to injury against West Ham on Saturday.