Arsenal legend Thierry Henry sent a text to Bukayo Saka on the morning of the Gunners’ clash with West Ham before the young winger equalled an impressive milestone set by his hero. Saka became only the second Arsenal player to score on their 200th appearance, following in the footsteps of Henry. The England international netted from the penalty spot after Jurrien Timber was fouled, securing three points for the north London side after Declan Rice had initially put West Ham ahead.
Their victory propelled Arsenal to the top of the table before Liverpool’s match against Chelsea. Henry was eager to keep Saka focused ahead of the match against the Irons, who have been struggling this season and have already replaced Graham Potter with Nuno Espirito Santo. The former France international gave a gentle reminder to Saka about Arsenal’s recent disappointing performances against the Hammers.
Mikel Arteta’s team had lost their previous two home matches against their London rivals without scoring a goal, but managed to secure a more positive outcome this time around.
When asked about equalling Henry’s milestone, Saka spoke about the ongoing influence the club icon has. “Thierry messaged me this morning to remind we lost the last two games to West Ham at home,” Saka said. “He is always pushing me. I am really happy to have my name with his records.”
The 24-year-old is pleased with Arsenal’s progress this campaign, as they aim to improve to win their first league title since 2004. Saka commented: “It showed the progress we have made. The last two seasons we slipped up at home against West Ham and we wanted to put that right today.
“We know the quality we have at the top end of the pitch and we know if we keep a clean sheet it is more than likely we will win the game.”
Arsenal manager Arteta lavished praise on his team’s star man after the victory. “It has been an incredible journey together,” the Spaniard said.
“The way he has done it is special. He is loved by everybody and the numbers he is creating are incredible at his age – so much more to come from him.”
“To go top of the table after some big fixtures over the last week and some injuries, we got some today but we were able to respond. We dominated and fully deserved to win this. We had some big, big chances we didn’t put away.
“The players who came on contributed to maintaining the standards. Let’s look forward to the international break.”