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Bukayo Saka reaches milestone in Arsenal win and Mikel Arteta had warning for rivals

talksport.com, 20 March 2023, 07:34
Bukayo Saka is continuing his fine Premier League season and passed another milestone for Arsenal in their 4-1 thrashing of Crystal Palace.

Saka scored two goals and recorded as many assists as the victory put The Gunners eight points clear of Man City going into the international break.

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His assist for Gabriel Martinelli's goal, and Arsenal's first against Crystal Palace, saw him hit double figures for goals and assists.

Saka is the first Premier League player to do so this season, with the 21-year-old shining for the Gunners.

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He is certainly Arsenal's next rising star, and his efforts in the current campaign have equalled a record last reached by Alexis Sanchez.

The Chilean was the most recent player to score ten and assist ten in the league for Arsenal, doing so in the 2016/17 campaign.

Sanchez finished that season with 24 goals and 11 assists in the Premier League, a tally that Saka might not be able to reach.

However, he has once again proven to be crucial in their title efforts, with the winger finding the back of the Palace net himself just before half-time.

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The goal was his 21st league contribution of the season, putting him third behind Erling Haaland on 33 and Harry Kane on 23.

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"I'm just happy to help my team," Saka said. "Each game I want to go into the games and try and affect them in the best way to help my team win, whether that's scoring or assisting. I managed to do that today and help us win the game, so I'm happy again."

And manager Mikel Arteta said there is more to come in a warning to the club's league rivals.

"He's improving because he's got the right teammates that make him better, and that's really important. It's true that he affected the game in the right way for us and he's been really consistent. We need to maintain that.

"He remains humble, he knows that he can still be much better, do things a lot better than he does and that's a big given because he's still 21 years old."

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Martin Odegaard is looking likely to be the next Arsenal player to also get double figures, with the Norwegian on ten goals and seven assists.

Should they continue such efforts until the end of the season, then the Gunners could be set to lift their first title since 2004.

Granit Xhaka scored his second goal in as many games to make it 3-0 to Arsenal, before Jeffrey Schlupp was able to get one back for Palace.

However, Saka found the back of the net for a second time to dismiss any fears of a late comeback from the visitors.

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Although they have now played a game more than City, they can head into the break knowing they have a comfortable cushion in top spot.

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