Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has hit back at any suggestion that Bukayo Saka was not injured during the recent international break.
Saka pulled out of England duty last week after coming off for the final 10 minutes of Arsenal’s 1-1 draw at Chelsea the previous Sunday.
The winger duly missed final Nations League games against Greece and the Republic of Ireland, but was quickly back playing for Arsenal on Saturday and starred in their victory over Nottingham Forest.
Saka opened the scoring for the Gunners inside 15 minutes and also set up Thomas Partey for their second goal on the way to a comfortable 3-0 win.
And asked what he would say to anyone who questioned whether Saka could have played for England last week, Arteta replied: “Well we can send an MRI scan, it’s very simple.
“That’s a communication that was very clear between the medical staff of Arsenal and the England national team.
“He hasn’t done anything, he was away and needed time to heal. He’s done one training session.”
Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard was the star of the show as Arteta’s side claimed a vital win that moves them within six points of Premier League leaders Liverpool, for now at least.
Starting at the Emirates Stadium for the first time since August, Odegaard put in a dominant display and set up Arsenal’s opening goal.
“I value that because it’s very difficult to do after five or six weeks out,” said Arteta. “It doesn’t surprise me because I’ve seen him every day, how he looks after himself, how much he wants it, the energy that he puts in and the courage that he has to play in any circumstances.
“Obviously, when he’s in the team, you can sense something that is different. It’s difficult to put a finger on it, but it’s different.”
Arsenal’s win was wrapped up late on by Ethan Nwaneri, who came off the bench to score his first Premier League goal.
The 17-year-old has impressed when given chances this season - scoring three times in the Carabao Cup - but Arteta says the club must be patient with him.
“What I like is that he comes in and in that context the first thing he does is take a touch, run forward, run past two players and put it inches away from the post,” he said.
“I am responsible to build a career for him. You have to do that brick by brick. Today, he put another brick.
“Now we have to put another cement, make sure it doesn’t get dry so we can put another one and that will stick.
“Then we put one more layer, one more layer. If you want to put five in a row believe me, it won’t work. We have to manage not only his expectation but his load as well, which is really important.”
