Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has expressed serious concern over Bukayo Saka's fitness after the England winger suffered an early injury during Wednesday's Champions League clash in Germany. The attacker limped off inside the opening exchanges before the Premier League champions fought back to earn a battling point against Bayern Munich.
English winger suffers early setback
Arteta fears Saka faces a spell on the sidelines after his talismanic wide man sustained a suspected thigh injury against the German champions. The Gunners forward pulled up unchallenged while attempting a routine pass in the 10th minute and had to be withdrawn immediately. Wednesday's hard-earned point at the Allianz Arena was consequently overshadowed by the prospect of losing a key player amid a gruelling calendar.
Substitute impact precedes German turnaround
Introduced in Saka's place, Eberechi Eze broke the deadlock in the 25th minute from an incisive Martin Odegaard pass after VAR overturned an initial offside flag. However, the visitors led for just 10 minutes before England captain Harry Kane split the backline from midfield to tee up Alphonso Davies and subsequently sent goalkeeper David Raya the wrong way from 12 yards after his shot struck Jurrien Timber's hand inside the box.
Sharing the medical staff's initial concerns over the winger's withdrawal when speaking to TNT Sports, Arteta said: "They [the medical team] are a bit concerned. A player who has to come off with a really sharp pain is never good news, but we have to wait and see."
Relentless intensity takes physical toll
Arsenal eventually salvaged a draw in the 82nd minute when Declan Rice exchanged passes with substitute Viktor Gyokeres and drilled into the bottom corner before Manuel Neuer produced an acrobatic stop to deny Timber a late winner. Remarkably, it marked only the second time in European Cup or Champions League history that the Gunners have scored first, fallen behind and avoided defeat, repeating their 2-2 stalemate against Bayern in April 2024.
Asked during his post-match press conference whether the relentless fixture schedule contributed to the injury, Arteta added: "Against Lille, he didn't start the game. Then he started the game at the weekend. And then it's very early in this game.
"The level of intensity these games require is something incredible. You could see what happened in the PSG-Barcelona game [on Tuesday]. This is man-to-man for 96 minutes. Every action. There's no breathing.
"The strength, the quality, the attention, the level that you need is unbelievable because it's the highest level. Those things happen, unfortunately. It doesn't look good at all, but we have to wait and see."
Medical scans determine recovery timeline
Saka will now undergo further scans back in north London to establish the exact severity of his thigh problem and how long he will be unavailable. Losing such an influential figure would be a major blow for Arteta as he prepares his squad for their upcoming domestic Premier League commitments this weekend. Consequently, Eze and Gyokeres will be relied upon to step up in attack.