Arsenal legend Thierry Henry was full of praise for Arsenal’s poster boy, Bukayo Saka, who played a key role in his team’s 2-1 victory over Real Madrid on Wednesday night, securing their place in this season’s Champions League semi-finals.
Los Blancos undoubtedly talked the talk before the north Londoners’ trip to the Spanish capital, with much of the conversation centred on a “remontada.” However, they failed to live up to the hype as the defending champions lost badly over two legs.
Saka’s clever chip started things off, and Vinicius Jr. then picked William Saliba’s pocket to level the score. They advanced to the semi-finals for the first time since 2009 thanks to a goal from Gabriel Martinelli in the 93rd minute that threw the away team into a frenzy.
Myles Lewis-Skelly, Declan Rice, Mikel Merino, and other Arsenal players put on incredible displays in the second leg, but Henry, who scored 228 goals in his 377-game career with the Gunners, singled out Saka and Gabriel Martinelli.
Mikel Merino became the second visiting player to assist two or more goals in a Champions League knockout round match at the Bernabeu last night.
One of the greatest strikers in football history praised the 43-cap, 12-goal England international for his defensive skills while speaking to Saka on CBS Sports’ coverage of the Champions League matches as fans of the Emirates Stadium persuaded themselves of victory.
“I’m really proud of him, particularly the way he stood up for himself.” Bukayo, I wanted to discuss the play. I’m sure you recall it, and I’ve said it a lot: people compliment our back four, but you and [Gabriel] Martinelli deserve special recognition for the way you defended on the wingers. At one point, you even ran back to assist [Jurrien] Timber when you didn’t have to.
Henry went on, “He had nobody, and you cheered yourself on and stopped the ball in the box.” “I don’t care about the penalty or the goal, which was excellent by the way, and I understand how it feels to score there, but what really strikes me is what you do off the ball. It’s simply amazing!
“Martinelli as well as you.” You can try to chip the ball the next time just for that. Excellent work! Saka smiled infectiously as Henry, a legend of Arsenal, joked. “We’ll try again one day,” stated the great lad from England.
See the wholesome conversation between Saka and Henry below:
In recent years, the lethal winger has taken a cue from the former French talisman-turned-pundit. Saka actually disclosed that the two had a FaceTime conversation prior to his team’s match against Real Madrid in the Spanish city, according to The Mirror.
“I’ve already spoken to him this morning, but I’ll be up if he wants to talk later. Let’s face it, I’m not going to sleep tonight. His confidence is the most important lesson I took away from him. The terror he instills in defenders is evident from the way he plays. I made an effort to take that away from him.
Saka, who was born in Ealing and is regarded as one of the best wingers in the world of football, had the ideal opportunity to end the match in the thirteenth minute from 12 yards out, but he made amends by shushing the Bernabeu crowd.
In a nutshell, Saka is by far Arsenal’s most valuable player. He keeps the attacking line cohesive while maintaining his defensive acumen, which will be crucial when they play Paris Saint-Germain in the competition’s next round.
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