Jamie Redknapp believes Arsenal need Bukayo Saka to rediscover his form and even perhaps change position to win the Premier League after adeflating Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester City.
Saka endured one other subdued afternoon as Premier League leaders Arsenal were beaten 2-0 by title rivals Man City at Wembley.
Arsenal were marginally on top within the opening 45 minutes and got here close through Kai Havertz who was denied by James Trafford early on.
But Manchester City dominated the second half and sealed a fifth Carabao Cup trophy for Pep Guardiola due to Nico O’Reilly’s quickfire brace.
For a protracted period Saka was one in all Arsenal’s best and most threatening players however the England star goes through a troublesome period, scoring just two goals since early December.
Redknapp said Saka was not ‘performing to the extent he can’ after Arsenal’s defeat to Man City and suggested he may benefit from moving across to the opposite flank.
‘That is where you wish your star players to step up,’ Redknapp said on Sky Sports. ‘The player that I feel right away that isn’t performing to the extent that he can is Bukayo Saka.
Your football fix
Metro‘s Head of Sport James Goldman delivers punchy evaluation, transfer talk and his tackle the week’s biggest stories direct to your inbox every week.
Enroll here, it’s an open goal.
‘I need to see more from him. He’s been a difference-maker for Arsenal for thus long, so repeatedly.
‘Of late I haven’t seen that kind of guile and imagination and skill and goals that we want to see from him And he’s got Max Dowman respiratory down his neck, Noni Madueke can play down that right-hand side as well.
‘I believe perhaps even playing down the left, sometimes, Saka. It seems like he’s not getting success against anyone he plays against.
‘I’m an enormous fan and I like the best way he plays but he’s the person who has to begin taking the sport by the scruff of the subsequent and fiddling with no fear if Arsenal are going to win this title.’
While Arsenal’s quadruple dream was abruptly ended by Man City, they continue to be within the driving seat to win their first Premier League title in 2004.
Mikel Arteta’s side boast a nine-point lead over second-placed City but Redknapp believes the Carabao Cup win ‘changes the entire complexion of the title race’.
‘When Liverpool lost here against Newcastle last yr, there was 12 points in it,’ Redknapp added. ‘That’s a large buffer and the opposite teams didn’t have a game in hand.
‘For Arsenal, the doubts, the negativity, this changes the entire complexion of the title race.
‘I’m not saying it puts Man City completely back in it, but it surely gives them a large opportunity after they play in April.’
Arsenal legend Ian Wright also believes the Wembley result could have an effect on the Premier League title race.
‘It’s nine points, but Man City have a game in hand and so they’ve got to play them, so it might go all the way down to three,’ he said.
‘Hastily, the pressure really turns up. Make no mistake, this nine points is a good nine points.
‘Arsenal really want to refocus and get themselves back on target for what they need to do. They should win games now.
‘People discuss how they win games ‘oh it’s set pieces’ – it doesn’t matter, everyone knows that. We’ve got a DNA of winning games resiliently.
‘They’ve got to kick into this because this team understand it’s not over.’
In addition to going for the title, Arsenal are also within the quarter-finals of each the Champions League and FA Cup, facing Sporting in the previous and Southampton within the latter.
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the most recent news on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
MORE: Pep Guardiola makes huge Arsenal claim after Manchester City win Carabao Cup
MORE: Ian Wright questions Arsenal star who ‘couldn’t hold onto the ball’ against Man City
MORE: Jamie Redknapp slams Mikel Arteta for ‘monumental error’ in Carabao Cup final