What defines a legend? A modern-day great? For Arsenal, it’s Thierry Henry, the club’s top scorer.
That’s Dennis Bergkamp too. This is Tony Adams. All three icons are cast in bronze outside Emirates Stadium.
That’s also Arsene Wenger. Although his spell in north London ended without many trophies, he remains the most successful Gunners manager of modern times. It was he who drove the move from Highbury to the Emirates. He was a double winner and a Champions League finalist.
He is also the only manager to win the Premier League’s golden trophy. No club in history has ever achieved an unbeaten season since the former English First Division was rebranded. Few players have contributed as much to the game as Wenger.
Current manager Mikel Arteta has a lot to achieve before he can enjoy similar recognition, but winning a major trophy at the end of 2025/26 would no doubt help.
It is no exaggeration to say that Bukayo Saka is definitely on his way to becoming a legend.
Where does Bukayo Saka rank among former Arsenal players at the Emirates?
The date is November 29, 2018, and the setting is a frigid stadium in Ukraine. His opponent was Vorskla Poltava. What was important? Now, Saka has made his first-team debut for the Gunners.
He was brought into the match by manager Unai Emery, coming off the bench in a 3-0 win at the age of 17 years, 2 months and 24 hours.
It’s safe to say the winger hasn’t looked back since then. He initially broke into the top flight as a left-back and even played in Arteta’s first game as manager, but he has now become one of the best wingers in the world.
Just a few weeks ago, he netted from the penalty spot in the last game against West Ham, taking his 100th goal involvement in his 200th Premier League game and cementing his place as one of the greatest players of his time at the Emirates.
Journalist Charles Watts, the figurehead of this Arsenal team, and indeed of the Arteta project, claims he was the “best right winger in the world” in 2023, and while Mo Salah may have surpassed him in that regard in the Premier League, he is still just above them.
As far as the Emirates Stadium icon is concerned, he sits very close to the top of the tree. Other candidates include current teammates William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães. Declan Rice is there too.
Still, is he close to overtaking players like Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie? Considering how they left, I’d have to say yes at this point.
Will he surpass Mesut Ozil? The German is one of the best playmakers we’ve seen in the last 20 years, but even his time in England’s capital ended in tears.
Alexis Sanchez also left under strange circumstances, but Saka still has a way to go before he can surpass the Chilean’s numbers. He found the back of the net 80 times in 166 games, most notably scoring 30 goals in the 2016-17 season. Saka’s best season in front of goal was 18, and there is room for improvement there.
There is no doubt that the club’s number seven is already an icon at the club, but who will be next on the talent conveyor?
Arsenal star could become an all-time player like Saka
Saka is Hail End. He has been an inspiration to many footballers looking to make the leap from the academy to the first team.
His influence has already proven to be a beacon for the likes of Max Dauman and Miles Lewis-Skelly.
Lewis-Skelly made his England debut last season, while Dowman is currently in the news for making his senior debut at the age of 15 a few months ago, making him the second-youngest player in Premier League history.
Youngest player in PL history | |
|---|---|
player | year |
1. Ethan Nwaneri | 15 years 5 months |
2. Max Dauman | 15 years 7 months |
3. Jeremy | 15 years 8 months |
4. Harvey Elliott | 16 years 1 month |
5. Matthew Briggs | 16 years 2 months |
Dauman is such a shiny new toy that it’s easy to forget about fellow Hail Ender Ethan Nwaneri.
Nwaneri, now 18, was the only player to appear in the Premier League at a younger age than Dauman, and he has gone from strength to strength since then.
Although he has yet to find the back of the net in 2025/26 and currently plays primarily as an attacking midfielder, he has proven to be a real game-changer in 2024/25.
Last season, while Saka was out injured, the teenager mainly played on the right wing and made a remarkable impact. In total, the young man scored 9 goals and provided 2 assists in 37 matches. One of them included a stunner against Manchester City.
In the process he earned high praise. After his performance in the Champions League, TNT Sports pundit Joe Cole said that Nwaneri was “the most exciting footballer in England and perhaps Europe”. That’s really great praise.
Cole is definitely a big fan of the teenager, remarking at another point during the season that he was like the great Lionel Messi.
“These touches that he creates in and around the box are, I hate to say it, similar to Messi,” said the former Chelsea star. “I don’t want to put any more pressure on this kid’s shoulders. I’m sure he’ll handle it. He’s playing with a lot of confidence and he’s a beautiful player.”
After such an impressive season, it’s easy to forget just how young this player is. Now that Dauman is all the rage, let’s shine a spotlight on Nwaneri once again.
He may have only played 145 minutes in the Premier League this season, but he is already far ahead of his contemporaries. Some may argue that he is ahead of Saka at the same age.
During his first full season as a senior player for England, he only beat the goalkeeper four times. Nwaneri had five more.
So there’s still plenty of reason to be excited about this teenager. Especially since he has the potential to become, in the words of Arsenal content creator Leo da Silva, “the greatest player of all time, like Saka”.
