Arsenal: How quickly can Bukayo Saka get into the first team?

Bukayo Saka is sweeping up the Arsenal food chain, so let’s get into real talk. How close is he to actually being utilized in a bigger capacity?

I’ve been making all kinds of jabs these past two days about how the Bukayo Saka hype train has pulled out of the station, and here I am, the conductor, stoking the engine even more. Still, it’s clear that Arsenal have a special kid on their hands, he is only 17, and it’s time we start talking reality.

As in, hype aside, how soon might we expect him to make an impact on the first team, or start appearing on the bench, at the very least?

It’s a loaded question, but I’ll try to unpack it. Thinking practically, it’s amazing how clear the road ahead is for Saka. There is no one in his way. Not a soul. Maybe Alex Iwobi, but Iwobi is a creative midfielder with a specific skill set and can be rotated around.

Mesut Ozil and Henrikh Mkhitaryan are both there as well, but their diminishing value and Unai Emery’s push towards youth couldn’t favor Saka any more than it already is.

Saka brings something no one else currently provides on the first team, and we saw it against Qarabag. He brings the ability to shake defenders with ease. And while we have yet to see how he would handle the added pressure of Premier League opposition, it’s safe to say that he doesn’t shy away from the spotlight.

He got his first start against Qarabag and he ran with it – literally – and impressed all of North London.

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There is a readiness to Saka in the way that he fills all the needs we currently have in a winger. But there is obviously still some work to be done. Still, just the fact that he was already starting against Qarabag after just being called up, speaks to Emery’s stock in the lad. Clearly he saw what we all saw, and that’s the important thing.

My biggest concern is that there won’t be any “easy” matches from here on out, barring perhaps a couple in the FA Cup. Meaning that Saka is going to either require more time, or a leap of faith that he must then capitalize on.

All things considered, it’s a bit hasty to expect his impact to be felt this season. Not even Reiss Nelson could manage that, though if Saka continues on the trajectory that he’s on, Nelson may be playing second fiddle before long.

The big reckoning will come in the summer. Unai Emery opted to loan out Nelson, and while that has been working wonders, I can’t help but ask if Emery might wish he had Nelson here with the club in light of the struggles of Ozil and Mkhitaryan.

Not that it was a mistake to loan Nelson – far from it – but just knowing that he could have found plenty of time and utilization makes me wonder if he may be less keen to loan out Saka in the same way next season.

If he doesn’t get loaned out next summer, then I’d expect him to have some serious opportunity to get into the first team then, early as that will be. He will only just be turning 18, but we’ve had young phenoms before.

If he does go on loan, then the answer is a bit easier – whenever he gets back.