Bukayo Saka is facing a tough situation at Arsenal right now. The right winger recently suffered an injury during the Champions League match against Bayern Munich on October 21. According to reports, the 25-year-old suffered a quadriceps/thigh muscle injury. This means that the Arsenal winger will be forced to sit out for at least six to eight weeks and will not return until December 2026. However, that is not the only issue concerning the Gunners right now. Real Madrid have renewed their interest in the right winger in a bid to boost their attack.
As per Sports Illustrated, Los Blancos aim to secure his transfer before the transfer market reopens in January. Even though Los Blancos have attackers like Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo, the management is still not convinced. Team manager Jose Mourinho wants someone who can make their attacking lineup nearly invincible. That is the main reason why Real Madrid is monitoring Saka’s performance at Arsenal this season. They want to restructure their frontline by the latter half of the 2026-27 season. With immense experience in the Premier League as well as the UEFA Champions League, Bukayo Saka meets all the requirements for Los Blancos as a right winger.
However, can the Gunners afford to leave Saka as of this moment? Mikel Arteta [who serves as the head coach] seems to have an appropriate answer to this. He expressed his concern for Saka’s recent injury in a recent interview. The head coach also maintained that he is not concerned about how long Saka will take to recover. He will be a part of the main squad whenever he returns to action.
Saka has been a part of the Gunners since 2008, when he joined the team’s youth academy at Hale End. He made his senior debut for the Gunners in the year 2018, and has been a core part of the team since. He played a crucial role in Arsenal’s historic Premier League victory last season, with 7 goals and 5 assists. The Gunners won the Premier League title for the first time after 22 years. Even in the 2026-27 season, he was doing well before he suffered the unexpected injury. Saka scored 3 goals in the seven matches he played in the Premier League this year. He was also awarded the Socrates Award for his charitable work at the Ballon d’Or awards ceremony a few days ago.
Apart from that, the player has also done extremely well for England at the international level. Saka was part of the Three Lions squad that made it to the semifinals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Although England couldn’t win the World Cup, Saka more than made up for it by scoring a hat-trick in the third-place playoff against France. England won the match 6-4 and secured their first podium finish at any FIFA World Cup edition since 1966.
Arsenal will definitely look out for suitable alternatives in place of Saka right now. But unless and until Bukayo himself decides to leave the club for good, the Gunners wouldn’t let him go just like that. The management is aiming for back-to-back Premier League titles this season, and they how important is Bukayo’s presence for that.
