On September 4, Beijing time (CEST), Carragher published an article in his Telegraph column, sharing his views on Saka.

Carragher's full column:

Saka is at a crossroads in his career, and soon we will know whether he is destined to be a good Arsenal player, or if he can rise to become a great player in the Premier League, the Champions League, and with England.

Saka will turn 25 this weekend, an age that is typically a footballer's peak years. While his legendary status as a member of Arsenal's title-winning team is undeniable, the public reaction to Arsenal's summer transfer window suggests a widespread belief that he can and should do more to achieve "world-class" status.

Arteta is precisely lacking such an attacker. Throughout the summer, he has been searching for players of the calibre of Vinicius and Álvarez to see if they could inject the much-needed star power into the team's attacking trio.

Having failed to sign a marquee forward, many believe Arsenal's title defence will be like their 1-0 away victory against Villa: impressive, but somewhat cautious.

A year ago, my assessment that Arsenal's title ambitions would be built on the foundation of an excellent goalkeeper in Raya and centre-backs Saliba and Gabriel proved correct.

In the PFA Team of the Year for 2024 announced two weeks ago, not a single forward was among the five Arsenal players selected. As Premier League champions, the absence of attacking players is unusual, which highlights that Arsenal is known for its defensive solidity and resilience, rather than its attacking flair.

On Sunday they face Chelsea, a marked contrast to how these two teams were perceived during Wenger's battles with Mourinho; today, Arsenal is seen as the pragmatist against the artist.

Despite Chelsea's improvement, Arsenal is still expected to defend their title, and to win it with a more aggressive style, their most talented players must play a greater role.

Arteta has players like Ødegaard and Saka at his disposal who possess this ability. Arteta will tell these two players specifically that they have even greater potential, and all signs suggest they are gradually realizing it.

In their first two league victories, Arsenal showed the potential to break free from the limitations of their current players. With the winning goal at Villa Park, Saka scored in back-to-back league matches for the first time since November 2023, a fact that surprised him when mentioned after the match.

Changing perceptions of Saka's ability depends entirely on statistics. Henry challenged him to contribute 15 goals and 15 assists this season, which says a lot. As Saka's mentor, Henry would never publicly issue such a challenge unless he believed Saka could achieve such a high target.

From this perspective, in the 38-game Premier League era, only three players have scored 15 goals and provided 15 assists in the same season: Henry, Hazard, and Salah, who contributed 29 goals and 18 assists when he helped Liverpool win the title in the 2023-24 season.

Saka's most productive seasons during his time at Arsenal were from 2021-22 to 2022-23, when his league goals and assists were 14 and 15 respectively. Last season, his goals and assists fell to 14, with both declining in the season before that.

This indicates that Saka's career has stalled in recent years, with injuries being an initial factor. Two years ago, it would have been unthinkable that Saka, at his best, would be a substitute in England's World Cup semi-final.

But Tuchel chose Morgan Rogers to start against Argentina. Given Rogers's form, this was understandable, but it was certainly painful and should serve as motivation for the team to avoid a repeat in future international tournaments.

Since then, Saka has scored 5 goals for club and country, including a hat-trick in the third-place match against France, averaging a goal every 56 minutes. If he can maintain this form, he is on course for his most prolific year yet.

Criticizing Arsenal for lacking superstars in and around the box is certainly unfair to Saka, as he has contributed immensely to the club. His goal against Villa was his 100th for club and country.

In any case, this is a notable achievement for a player who should be in his prime years. Some players are underestimated because they are too familiar, and it would be a great loss for the team if he were not the undisputed starter on Arsenal's right wing.

When we judge whether a player has reached world-class status, we often tend to judge them by their current level rather than their future potential, and truly reaching elite level is always a gradual process.

Even some of the greatest players in history were not natural world-class stars when they first joined their clubs. Think of the acclaimed Henry during his time at Arsenal; he was recognized as one of the best players as his career progressed.

This was undeniable when he left, not when he arrived. Many Premier League superstars at Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, and Liverpool have had similar experiences.

De Bruyne and Salah became superstars at their respective clubs, having initially failed to make an impact at Chelsea. De Bruyne was 24 when he joined Manchester City, and Salah was 25 when he moved to Anfield.

Since Saka was named PFA Young Player of the Year in 2023, there have been expectations that he would become one of the most feared attackers in the world. It is not uncommon for young players to reach a plateau after an initial burst of form.

Saka still has at least six years to reach his ambitious personal goals, and if all of these objectives are met, it will completely change the perception of this Arsenal team.

Saka has every reason to strive to become known as the most exciting English attacking talent of his generation, not Palmer.

Last season demonstrated that, contrary to previous conventions, Arsenal did not need a superstar striker to end their long wait for a title, with the team's top league scorer registering 14 goals. To reach the next level and defeat strong teams like Paris Saint-Germain in a Champions League final, Arteta needs more contributions in the final third, and he knows this well.

Despite significant investment in defence and midfield this summer, it still appears that the defending champions' squad is incomplete. Saka's continued rise, perhaps, can offer Arsenal fans at least some reassurance.

Traducido por IA.

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