Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has announced that winger Bukayo Saka will be sidelined for “many weeks” with a hamstring injury.
The England international was forced off during Saturday’s 5-1 win against Crystal Palace and left Selhurst Park on crutches.
Saka, 23, has been in impressive form this season, scoring nine goals and providing 13 assists across 24 games in all competitions.
“It’s not looking good,” Arteta said. “He’s going to be out for many weeks. It is what it is. He’s injured, we cannot change it. We’re going to use this time now to help him.”
Arteta mentioned that he is working on “putting some ideas together” to cope with Saka’s absence. Arsenal has experience dealing with the loss of key players, having already lost captain Martin Odegaard to injury this season.
When asked if Saka had torn something in his hamstring, Arteta confirmed, “Yes. Probably there are ways to prevent the injury. There are a lot of factors. We are looking at everything and what we can do differently.”
Arteta also noted that Saka was “gutted” and “really emotional” upon learning the severity of his injury.
Addressing whether the congested fixture list contributed to Saka’s injury, Arteta replied, “It’s probably more the accumulation [of matches] as people like Declan [Rice] and Bukayo have played over 130 games in three seasons.”
Additionally, Arteta confirmed that Raheem Sterling will also be out for several weeks after sustaining a knee injury, requiring further testing.
