Bukayo Saka has been pivotal for Arsenal so far in this campaign, which has been epitomised with his message towards Martin Odegaard.
The Englishman has been excellent since breaking into the first-team setup in 2019 and his impressive assist record proves it.
The creativity burden has been placed heavily on Saka, but he is thriving from it, and with Odegaard’s improvement in form, the creation of chances should now come through multiple sources.
Arsenal’s attacking phase of play has been questioned recently due to the lack of threat in front of goal, but Saka and Odegaard are on the verge of sorting out this issue.
After the impressive 3-0 victory against Southampton on Saturday, it emerged that Saka is the only Arsenal player to provide 20 or more assists across all competitions since the start of the 2019/20 season.
The Hale End academy graduate has been crucial for Mikel Arteta since he took over as Arsenal boss in December 2019, which is backed up by the fact that he is his most used player.
Since breaking into the first-team side, the youngster sits within the top five for appearances made for Arsenal before turning 20, meaning he is above Arsenal legends such as David Rocastle and Liam Brady.
His usage under Arteta is due to the strengths he brings to the squad, with one of these being his ability to create goals.
After his breakthrough season in 2019/20 where he scored five goals and made 11 assists, he was rewarded with a new long-term contract and handed the number seven shirt – a number that is associated with creating chances.
His marvellous assist for Alexandre Lacazette against the Saints highlighted the importance of Saka when he is available for selection.
Odegaard also played a major part in the win for Arsenal after scoring the Gunners’ second goal of the match.
The Norwegian was signed in the summer to ease the goal contribution burden away from Saka and improve Arsenal’s attacking phase of play, which has certainly been the case in recent weeks.
With both players under the age of 25, Arsenal have a good basis and can create an influx of goals for the foreseeable future.
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