Arsenal: Bernd Leno’s vote for Bukayo Saka reflects beautifully
By Josh Sippie
Arsenal keeper Bernd Leno said that he hopes Bukayo Saka stays at the club ‘for a long time.’ Meanwhile, I’m paying attention to the reflection of that statement.
My new gush project is Bernd Leno. I hope that by talking so much about how incredible he is, that he will finally enter into the conversation for best keepers in the world, where the Arsenal keeper truly belongs. And thus, I also have to worry about the rumor of bids coming for the German this summer.
That’s always going to happen when you have someone of his quality, but I hope that this club learned enough from the Wojciech Szczesny debacle not to make the same mistake with Bernd Leno. When you have your keeper—keep him. They aren’t easy to replace.
Just ask Chelsea.
Following the Olympiakos victory, Bernd Leno chimed in on the incredibly talented Bukayo Saka. The 18-year-old delivered the key assist against the Greek side, thus increasing his lead for most assists on the team.
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Leno said he hopes that Saka stays at the club for a very long time. And of course we all got the warm and fuzzies because that’s so sweet and what have you. But meanwhile, I’m looking at the reflection of that statement with even more giddiness.
If Leno is so determined to have Saka stay at the club for a long time, then clearly Leno has no intention of leaving any time soon either. Because if he has any indication in his head that he wanted to leave, he wouldn’t care where Saka spent the next few years of his time. Right? I’m not just making this up. It’s real.
And given that it’s real, I’m just over the moon knowing that Leno is enjoying his time here. Because it was a serious concern, especially with how much he used to get hung out to dry by his defense. Leno Island was a real concern. It’s enough to drive a guy out of the club in search of a place where he can be in a better circumstance.
I’ll go ahead and stretch this even further and say that it’s an investment in the prospectus of this defense as well. If he’s focused long-term then he believes in what’s happening here.
I will always find reasons to love what Leno is doing, and recently, he’s been saying all the right things too.