After establishing himself as one of the greatest young players in the world with a wonder goal while representing England, Bukayo Saka will return his attention to Arsenal's attempt to win the Premier League title on Saturday.
The attacker, who also shines for Gareth Southgate's national team, has been instrumental in the Gunners' quest to win the title for the first time since 2004.
The 21-year-old was now a young prodigy from Arsenal's junior program. The goal he scored in England's 2-0 victory over Ukraine in a Euro 2024 qualifier at Wembley on Sunday was terrific.
Saka moved away from the Ukrainian defence in a beautiful display of grace and cunning before launching a magnificent shot from 20 yards out that arrowed into the top corner.
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Only Michael Owen, Wayne Rooney, Jimmy Greaves, and Dixie Dean have scored more goals for England at an early age than Saka, who now has eight overall.
It was a rare occurrence for Saka's Arsenal teammate Oleksandr Zinchenko, who was serving as the captain of Ukraine at Wembley, not to be happy with the forward's capacity to deliver a moment of absolute creativity.
Saka's precise cross already set up harry Kane's first goal for England.
"We all agree that he is a fantastic player, according to Zinchenko. There are no buddies on the field, and he defeated me despite the fact that he is currently on fire. Big players control the outcome of these games".
When Arsenal hosts Leeds on Saturday, Saka and Zinchenko will rejoin the same team as they try to retain their eight-point lead over second-place Manchester City as the title race enters its final stretch.
With 12 goals and ten assists after 28 league games, Saka will have done most of the work if Mikel Arteta's team triumphs.
"He is the only player in the Premier League this year with double digits in both goals and assists".
The phrase "Never Satisfied."
Except for Martin Odegaard, Saka has started every league game. He has the third-highest number of tackles among Gunners players and has taken more shots than any of his teammates.
"Because he is such a crucial player for Arsenal, "I hope he stays on this form for the rest of the season."
But, it was tempting to wonder if his thoughts had wandered to a traumatic evening at the exact location less than two years earlier when the audience cheered in unison in praise of Saka's magnificent goal against Ukraine.
Saka had the worst moment of his career on a chilly Wembley night in July 2021 when his failed penalty led to England's 3-2 shootout loss to Italy in the European Championship final.
Despite Saka's devastation and admission that he had "let the England family down," there was still a nasty backlash on social media, including racist abuse.
Saka, who has a quiet demeanour and a soft voice, showed remarkable maturity when he pledged not to let the criticism "break me," He has constantly given excellent performances.
The London-born star and Arsenal are allegedly negotiating to extend his contract, making him the club's highest-paid player with weekly earnings of over £300,000. (Approx Sh49mn).
Yet, Arteta made it apparent that Saka still needs to finish the finished product, hinting at the driving factor behind his ascent.
At his age and level, "the consistency that he has demonstrated is really difficult to see," Arteta added.
"There is space for improvement for him".
"He is never content and is capable of doing many things more effectively. But, we are overjoyed to have him".
