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Left for £0, now worth £191m: Arsenal will regret losing a big Saka upgrade

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Published Sep 21, 2026, 6:38 AM GMT+1

Matt specialises in football analysis, transfer insight and original feature writing across the Premier League, EFL and Scottish football.

A sports writer for 15 years, Matt graduated with a BA in Sports Journalism in 2018 and has developed particular expertise in Arsenal and the wider Premier League while also reporting on clubs including Tottenham Hotspur, Leeds United, Celtic, Rangers and teams across the EFL. He joined Football FanCast as part of its writing team in 2019 before progressing to Assistant Editor and then becoming a Senior Editor in 2021.

His work combines authoritative reporting with data-led analysis, tactical insight and informed transfer assessment. Matt regularly examines how players fit into different systems, what their underlying numbers reveal about their performances and whether transfer targets represent realistic solutions for clubs. His analysis aims to go beyond the headline, explaining not just what has happened but what it means for a team, manager or player.

Matt's journalism has also appeared through the Press Association, with his work featured by Sky Sports and the Daily Mail. He previously served as Arsenal and Premier League Editor at VAVEL and gained first-hand club-media experience with Chesterfield FC. Over his career, he has interviewed figures including Arsène Wenger, Ray Parlour, Alan Smith, Lucy Bronze and Steph Houghton. Matt's voice has been heard across Arsenal Fan TV and Love Sport Radio.

Through his reporting, analysis and features, Matt brings readers credible football insight grounded in research, statistics, tactical understanding and years of experience covering the professional game.

Today, Matt leads Football FanCast's features team as Senior Editor, overseeing the publication's opinion coverage while helping shape its overall editorial standards and content strategy.

Bukayo Saka has so often been heralded as Arsenal's starboy. Ever since Mikel Arteta came into the club, he has felt like an ever-present player in the team.

During Arteta's first game in charge, Saka was actually fielded at left-back. Seven years on and he's now one of the finest wingers in the world.

That said, the last two years have not been awfully kind to the England international. A hamstring tear in 2024/25 has seen him lose some pace and explosiveness. After a year in and out of the team his finishing also looks to have regressed.

Against Napoli and Brighton in the last week and a half, the winger has been guility ot missing simple chances. This is not the Saka of old.

Why Saka is still vital for Arsenal

Arsenal's 3-0 defeat at the hands of Brighton raised alarm bells but not necessarily about their defence. No, it was their attack that was the biggest point of contention.

Over the summer, Andrea Berta failed to entice the likes of Morgan Rogers or Vinicius Junior to the club. All that he was left with to show for his efforts was Greek winger Christos Tzolis.

As a result, the pressure has only ramped up on Saka who in years gone by, has been the only attacker at the club you could categorise as truly elite.

In recent seasons, it's difficult to suggest he is among the finest forward players in Europe but even when he underperforms, he still looks like the most likely player in red and white to make something happen.

That was summed up against Brighton on Saturday. Saka missed a one-on-one after a brilliant counter attack led to Martin Odegaard feeding him the ball inside the area. However, his effort was tame and straight at Bart Verbruggen.

Saka vs Brighton

Minutes played	81
Touches	39
Accurate passes	16/21 (76%)
Shots	2
Key passes	3
Successful crosses	3
Successful dribbles	3
Duels won	5/8
Possession lost	11x

That aside, Saka caught the eye in other metrics. As he so often has been, he was the creative hub of this team. Odegaard is usually the leading man in that regard but with the Norwegian suffering a rare off day this term, Arsenal's number 7 took it upon himself to create the most chances on the pitch (3) and complete the most dribbles (3).

Thus, the 25-year-old is evidently still such a vital part of this Arsenal side. Without him, they would definitely be worse off.

Despite a goal against Ipswich in midweek, Noni Madueke didnt't see a single minute on Saturday which rather up what Arteta thinks about him. Saka is still very much the first choice right winger down at N5.

Arsenal threw away a bigger talent than Saka when he was a boy

You all know the story by now. When he was a child, Arsenal took the decision to reject Harry Kane from their academy. He ultimately ended up joining Tottenham Hotspur where he would go on to become their all-time record goalscorer.

Snapped wearing an Arsenal jersey during the Invincible celebrations of 2003/04, he has never been seen in public wearing the red and white since then.

He's a Spurs legend, an icon of the modern-game, but not the only world-class attacker the Gunners will regret allowing to leave when they were a kid.

Indeed, another story concerns French superstar Michael Olise. Before he was dazzling in the Premier League with Crystal Palace and then setting the Bundesliga alight at Bayern Munich, he was in the Arsenal academy, albeit for a brief period.

Michael Olise season by season

Season

Goals

Assists

2021/22	4	8
2022/23	2	11
2023/24	10	6
2024/25	17	18
2025/26	22	26
2026/27	8	3

So, what happened? Well, prior to spells in the Chelsea and Manchester City academy, Olise was plying his trade on the youth pitches at Arsenal. Yet, rather unsurprisingly if you know the winger's nonchalant personality, he struggled to convince.

José Gomes, who was the manager at Reading and saw the potential in Olise, shed light on exactly what happened throughout his youth career. Gomes said: "Before he was 14, he was at Arsenal's youth academy, but he didn't adapt".

Gomes continued: "Chelsea kicked him out for the same reason and some tried to do so at Reading: because he didn’t attend classes and didn’t pay attention to his studies."

Well, it's sade to say that those Premier League academy's will likely be cursing their luck with this one. After all, over the summer Real Madrid revealed their willingness to pay around £191m for the 24-year-old trickster. Why? Well he's one of the best wingers in the world, perhaps the best winger full stop.

Since trading Palace for Bayern, Olise has been nothing short of mesmerising. Last term, he scored 22 goals and supplied 26 assists in all competitions. Those are numbers that Saka could only dream of. Last term, the England star scored just 11 and assisted seven.

Michael Olise in action for Bayern Munich

Not only does he trump Arsenal's starboy in the goals department but he wipes the floor with him in Saka's best attribute; creativity.

So far this term, Olise has been in the groove again with eight goals in seven games and three assists. Together, he and Kane have proven Arsenal wrong.

This is certainly a classic case of what if. Arsenal's forward line are simply crying out for a player like Olise right now, particularly with Saka's long-term future being questioned.

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