%20rotate(-8.06)%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22336.19%20136.81%20330.16%2094.25%20326.06%2071.19%20326.44%2071.13%20335.22%2093.54%20352.29%20134.52%20373.95%20131.46%20362.7%2052.01%20350.02%2053.8%20356.05%2096.36%20360.15%20119.42%20359.77%20119.48%20350.99%2097.08%20333.91%2056.09%20312.25%2059.15%20323.51%20138.6%20336.19%20136.81%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22402.91%2059.3%20412.36%20126.02%20427.17%20123.92%20417.72%2057.21%20431.59%2055.24%20429.79%2042.51%20387.23%2048.53%20389.04%2061.27%20402.91%2059.3%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22463.51%20118.77%20458.69%2084.71%20474.68%2082.44%20479.51%20116.5%20494.36%20114.4%20483.11%2034.95%20468.26%2037.06%20472.96%2070.25%20456.96%2072.52%20452.26%2039.32%20437.4%2041.43%20448.65%20120.88%20463.51%20118.77%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22540.5%20107.87%20538.77%2095.68%20518.91%2098.49%20515.77%2076.29%20535.63%2073.47%20533.93%2061.5%20514.07%2064.32%20511.11%2043.42%20530.98%2040.61%20529.25%2028.42%20494.53%2033.34%20505.78%20112.78%20540.5%20107.87%22%2F%3E%0A%20%20%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22cls-1%22%20points%3D%22299.03%20155.17%20301.29%20171.58%20542.78%20138.39%20540.5%20121.97%20299.03%20155.17%22%2F%3E%0A%3C%2Fsvg%3E)
Arsenal will be sweating over the fitness of superstar winger Bukayo Saka after he was forced off with what looked like a hamstring injury against Crystal Palace on Saturday evening.
Saka has been in remarkable form this season, with the winger bringing up his 250th appearance in Arsenal colours at Selhurst Park.
The winger, who recorded 22 goal contributions in 23 games ahead of Saturday's game and leads the Premier League with ten assists, lasted just 24 minutes on Saturday as a result of the injury and was replaced by Leandro Trossard.
After being withdrawn, Saka headed straight down the tunnel and will undoubtedly be further assessed.
Bukayo Saka forced off with suspected hamstring injury vs Crystal Palace
While the win was great, Bukayo's injury left an almighty sour note on what was an otherwise superb performance that saw Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli both get on the score sheet and see their confidence rise to levels we haven't seen for months.
But the big issue is Bukayo's injury and just as things looked like they were starting to turn in Arsenal's favor, the footballing gods decided to throw an almighty spanner in the works.
Speaking post-game, manager Mikel Arteta offered a worrying update on No. 7.
"He felt something in his hamstring, he couldn’t continue, and he’ll have to be assessed," Arteta said via arsenal.com. "So, we’re really worried about that one."
So that doesn't exactly instill confidence that Saka's withdrawal was more out of precaution, instead something might be seriously wrong with his hamstring.
But when pressed on how bad the injury is, Arteta was tight-lipped.
"It’s very difficult to now – they have tested him inside but very difficult to say how bad it is," Arteta added.
Depending on how long Saka is out for, it is a huge blow to the title chances for Arsenal, but if there was one positive of Saka's injury, it was that Martinelli was able to release the mental handbrake and play free.
Shifting over to the right-hand-side, Martinelli looked every bit the attacking menace we had come to know, with his straight-line pace, ability to harrass defenders and put early, dangerous balls into the box a feature of his game against Palace.
It is a small consolation, and Martinelli might have to step up in Bukayo's absence because we know that depending on the severity of the injury, it could be a month or so before we see Saka again.