Bukayo Saka will be out until at least March after undergoing hamstring surgery, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has revealed.
Arsenal moved back up to second in the Premier League table with a 1-0 win over Ipswich at the Emirates. It was Saka’s first game without the England winger after he tore his right hamstring in last weekend’s win over Crystal Palace.
Ahead of Friday’s game, Arteta said Saka, 23, would be out for “many weeks”. But after his side picked up a win that kept the pressure on leaders Liverpool, Arteta gave his star player longer minutes.
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Sky Sports News’ Danyal Khan and Nick Wright look at how Arsenal fared in their first game without star man Bukayo Saka against Ipswich.
“He had surgery and everything went well, but unfortunately he will be out for a few weeks,” Arteta said.
“It will take more than two months. I don’t know exactly how much longer. It depends on how the scar tissue starts to heal, the first week or so, and the mobility. It’s very difficult to say.
“Bukayo’s replacement will be the team. There were moments tonight when things went well and there were moments where we knew there was still work to be done. But I’m confident we will do it. We have to rely on “It’s a team, not an individual.”
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Premier League match highlights between Arsenal and Ipswich
Saka’s injury spell will be a major blow to Arteta as he looks to oversee Arsenal’s first Premier League title in 20 years.
In Saka’s absence and the Gunners’ final game of 2024, Kai Havertz scored the game’s only goal midway through the opening period.
Gabriel, Havertz and Martin Odegaard all dismissed chances to increase Arsenal’s lead in the second period, but their win moved them back to within six points of leaders Liverpool (who have played one game more than the Reds) and a point ahead of Chelsea after boxing out. Lost to Fulham on the same day.
Gabriel reacts after sending a close-range header wide of the Ipswich goal.
Arteta continued: “I’m very happy with the win, the clean sheet and big parts of the game. They are a difficult opponent and we have a lot of games under our belts.
“You can see that teams are winning by small margins. Today we could have made that gap bigger, but we didn’t and we defended well with courage in the last few minutes.
“We should have scored more. We had a big chance in the second half when Gabriel headed in from one yard, but the team was consistent and didn’t concede anything, which will always give us a chance to win.”
Arsenal are scheduled to play against Brentford next New Year’s Day. Ipswich, who remain second from bottom and three points off safety, play Chelsea on Monday night.
Ipswich suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat at home to Newcastle ahead of their trip to the Emirates, their fifth defeat in six games.
“It was a good step in the right direction for us,” manager Kieran McKenna said. “We weren’t up to our level against Newcastle. Today we knew we had to be resilient and we did that.”
Analysis: Arteta has work to do to find a formula without Saka
Sky Sports’ Nick Wright at the Emirates Stadium:
Arteta has promised Arsenal will be “different” without Saka. He knows there is no direct replacement for the 23-year-old. However, this evidence suggests that it may take some time to find a formula that works in his absence, as he is embarking on an extended period of time on the sidelines.
Martin Odegaard hits a shot against Ipswich.
Martinelli was selected to play Arsenal’s right winger role after impressing following Saka’s withdrawal against Crystal Palace, but he struggled, failing to register a single shot, create a chance or even complete a dribble.
The goal came from the other side of the pitch, with Trossard sending a teasing cross past Ben Johnson and into the six-yard box, where Havertz pounced. However, Arsenal continued to direct a higher percentage of their attacks down the right.
Arsenal sent 49% of their attacks down the right flank.
Martinelli wasn’t the only one they paid attention to. Martin Odegaard provided support and Arteta’s front line was more mobile than usual. Gabriel Jesus and Havertz also featured in the side, swapping positions before Jesus was substituted.
Their movement occasionally caused problems for Ipswich, but Arsenal generally struggled to carve out openings apart from a second-half spell that resulted in a goal for the visitors.
Havertz is ready to stand up, but others must follow his lead
Sky Sports Ben Grounds at Emirates Stadium:
“It’s true you don’t score five goals every week and there was a certain level of satisfaction in the voices of the home supporters chanting ‘1-0 to Arsenal’ at the final whistle.
“This has turned into such a shoddy performance in crowded fixtures that Mikel Arteta doesn’t care. Let’s check this and move on.
“It was a game that will never be remembered, but one that Arsenal ultimately won thanks to Kai Havertz’s ingenious escape from the ball.
“The German was rewarded simply for not staying still. His vitality would later lead to warnings, but in Saka’s absence it was important that he continued his impressive performances during 2024.
“His decisive strike was his 24th goal of the year, just four behind Saka. As long as the starboy is injured, Havertz should continue his trend of finding the net.”
