Bukayo Saka injury news, update: Will Arsenal star miss Man City match, England games with ankle problem?

Arsenal briefly rose to second in the Premier League with their 4-0 victory at Bournemouth to finish off September, but it may have come at a price.

The Gunners were exceptional at both ends of the pitch, keeping another away clean sheet while scoring the most goals they have in a top-flight game all season.

Bukayo Saka started it off with his 17th-minute opener, but after starting despite being considered a “doubt” for the match, he will again now be sweating out an injury.

Saka was withdrawn with 14 minutes remaining, limping heavily after a challenge by Milos Kerkez, and the 22-year-old will need to be assessed. With a massive tilt against Manchester City at home on October 8, that’s a big blow to Mikel Arteta’s side as they chase the defending champions for this year’s title.

MORE: Arsenal dominate Bournemouth 4-0 but Bukayo Saka goes off injured

Bukayo Saka ankle injury news, updates

Bukayo Saka was replaced by Fabio Vieira, and Arteta said afterwards that he was not sure how serious the injury was.

“I haven’t had a chance to speak to him,” said Arteta, who said Saka had been stamped upon and noted that Gabriel was also hobbling at full-time, adding that he was also unaware of the defender’s state of fitness.

Having already been a doubt to play against the Cherries, Saka’s late withdrawal appears to be a further blow to his chances of making Arsenal’s lineup against Man City next weekend.

How many matches will Bukayo Saka miss?

It’s unclear at this stage whether Bukayo Saka will miss games, but that certainly seems a possibility. Arsenal visit French club Lens in the Champions League group stage on Tuesday before their enormous Sunday meeting with City at Emirates Stadium.

With City and the Gunners contesting the title until the latter stages of 2022/23, the match is seen as one that could have an important bearing on the destiny of the trophy this time around.

An international break takes place after the game, meaning Saka’s status for England’s October fixtures are in jeopardy as well.

The Three Lions play a friendly against Australia on October 13 and could all-but seal Euro 2024 qualification with a positive result in a home qualifier against reigning champions Italy four days later.

Arsenal then return to action with two away games. They visit fellow London side Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on October 21 before traveling to Spain for a Champions League group stage match against Sevilla three days later.

The Gunners wrap up October at home to newly-promoted side Sheffield United.

Bukayo Saka upcoming matches for Arsenal, England

Why did Mikel Arteta leave Bukayo Saka on vs Bournemouth?

It’s not often that a manager is criticised after a 4-0 victory, but Arteta is under fire for his decision to leave Saka on the field long enough to be injured.

Team-mates William Saliba, Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard had also been doubts, yet Saka, Rice, and Saliba all proved fit enough to start, while Trossard was named on the bench.

With Arsenal 3-0 ahead by the 53rd minute, the situation was ripe for Arteta to protect Saka by taking him off. The academy product had extended his Premier League appearance streak to a club-record 87 games by starting, and his goal contributed to the result being beyond doubt with plenty of time remaining.

Bournemouth had been targeting Saka with their physical play, fouling him twice and leaving him sprawled on the pitch on several other occasions.

He was shown limping at one point late in the first half, bet Arteta left Saka on the field long enough for him sustain further injury, eventually departing after receiving medical treatment.

Arteta was not asked about the decision by media in his postmatch press conference, but he received criticism on social media following the game.