Just hours after he arrived at St George's Park for England duty, Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka has pulled out of Gareth Southgate's squad for their upcoming October internationals.
The Arsenal star, who has won back to back England Men's Player of the Year awards, missed the Gunners 1-0 win over Manchester City last weekend after suffering a hamstring injury in their mid-week Champions League defeat to Lens. Up until the Man City clash, the 22-year-old had played in Arsenal's last 87 league games, which was a club-record streak.
But that streak was ended on Sunday when he was not named as part of Arsenal's squad at the Emirates. Southgate had hoped to have Saka available for England's internationals against Australia and Italy.
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And it looked as though he would when Saka reported for England duty at St George's Park, being snapped arriving at the complex in his three Lions tracksuit. However, it has now been determined that after meeting with England's medical staff, the winger will play no part in their October internationals.
A statement from England said: "Bukayo Saka will play no part in England’s fixtures with Australia and Italy. The forward reported to St. George’s Park on Monday alongside the rest of the Three Lions’ squad.
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"Having missed Arsenal’s Premier League win against Manchester City on Sunday through injury, Saka was assessed by the England medical team and it was decided the player would continue his rehabilitation at his club."
Despite his young age, Saka has become a pivotal part of both Arsenal and England's success since his breakthrough 2020/21 campaign for the Gunners. Last season, he netted 14 Premier League goals, helping Arsenal return to the Champions League.
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However, there have been some concerns of late about Gunners boss Mikel Arteta's reluctance to give Saka a break, especially after some of the injuries he has picked up. At just 22-years-old, Saka is close to having played nearly 200 senior games for the Gunners.
Against Bournemouth last month, Saka limped off injured in a game that Arsenal won comfortably 4-0. However, just days later, he was named in Arsenal's starting line-up against Lens in the Champions League, only to be taken off injured after 34 minutes.
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