If Jadon Sancho is worth £73m Bukayo Saka must be £150m after starring role in big win over Man Utd

IF Jadon Sancho is valued at £73million, then how much would it cost to buy Bukayo Saka?

Because if this match is anything to go by, the Arsenal winger must be worth at least twice as much as his England rival.

For while Sancho was virtually invisible as he once again failed to live up to his extortionate transfer fee, Saka was at the heart of everything.

So the very last thing Manchester United needed after their midweek mauling at Liverpool was to run slap bang into the unstoppable Emirates idol.

And though the Gunners might not have the five world class players that Mikel Arteta says they need to challenge for the title, at least they have one genuine superstar on their hands.

Because if Arsenal are going to achieve their ambitions of Champions League qualification this season, then it is Saka who is going to carry them over the line.

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Three days after scoring a nerveless penalty to confirm his team’s 4-2 win at Chelsea, he was back on the spot to send David De Gea the wrong way and the home fans into ecstasy.

But it wasn’t just his effort from 12 yards which made Saka the stand-out star of this edgy encounter between these two former giants.

Because mass panic broke out in the United ranks every time Saka got on the ball as the visitors tried and failed to shut out the threat down their left flank.

The match was only 20 seconds old when Saka was subjected to the first foul of the afternoon by Nemanja Matic.

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It was just a prelude for what was to follow as his anxious opponents were driven to distraction by the youngster’s close control and trickery.

There were only three minutes on the clock when his curling shot was pushed out by De Gea for the unpredictable Nuno Tavares to score his first goal for the club.

And it was Saka’s give and go exchange of passes with Martin Odegaard which eventually led to that first-half penalty opportunity following a shove in the back from Alex Telles.

The United left-back was infuriated with the decision by VAR Jarred Gillet, just as Chelsea’s Cesar Azpilicueta had complained that Saka had gone down too easily to win his midweek spot-kick.

Yet there was no doubt that contact was made in both instances and that Saka had simply made the most of his opportunity.

And that is not something that can often be said about this Arsenal team who love to put their manager and their supporters through the wringer.

Even with a two-goal lead against a United team at rock bottom, they still managed to turn this into an edge of the seat nerve shredder.

And if Bruno Fernandes had been half as efficient as Saka from the penalty spot, they might not even have held on for the victory which keeps their top four hopes alive.

In the end those fears were put to bed when Granit Xhaka’s 30-yard thunderbolt flew past De Gea to end any chance of a United comeback.

And minutes later Saka limped off clutching his thigh, receiving a standing ovation from the Emirates as he made his way around the pitch.

Now Arteta must pray that his talisman will be for his team’s next game away to West Ham.

Because with five matches remaining, the top four is very much within Arsenal’s grasp.

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But they are going to need all the help they can get to get there. 

And no-one will be more important than Saka.

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk