— (Reuters) Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta defended his decision not to rest winger Bukayo Saka in a 1-0 Europa League win over PSV Eindhoven on Thursday, saying the world’s top players are expected to perform at their best while playing once every three days.
Saka has started 12 of the Premier League club’s 14 matches in all competitions this season and was on the team sheet once again as Granit Xhaka’s second-half goal secured Arsenal a place in the Europa League knockouts.
Prior to being replaced in the 85th minute, the England international, who will be looking to preserve his fitness ahead of next month’s World Cup, appeared to be having difficulty.
Arteta told reporters, “He got a kick, he was limping a little bit, but hopefully he will be okay.” “Take a look at the best athletes in the globe. Every three days, they play 70 games, and they consistently make the difference and win the game ” You must be able to accomplish that if you want to be at the top.
And I believe we are making a serious error if we start to introduce anything new into a young player’s mentality. I want people to come to my door and say, “I want to play, I want to win the game.” There is no fitness coach in the world that is going to tell me that they cannot do it because I’ve seen it. Players who score 50 goals do not participate in 38 games during the season.
Arsenal has won all four of its group games and currently leads Group A with 12 points, followed by PSV on seven, and Bodo/Glimt on four. FC Zurich is still pointless.
Arsenal, who are top of the Premier League standings on 27 points, next travel to 14th-placed Southampton on Sunday..
Arteta defends his choice to play Saka despite fears about fatigue
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