Bukayo Saka suffered a heartbreaking penalty shootout loss with Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain, before joining the England national team's World Cup training camp in Florida with an ongoing Achilles injury that kept him out of their friendly against New Zealand. As manager Thomas Tuchel manages his workload ahead of the tournament, podcasters are debating how the winger fits into the squad's tactical puzzle.
On The Rest Is Football, Micah Richards pointed out the tactical dilemma of fitting Saka into the national team's attack. "Saka, Saka can do it, but he, he likes to get on the ball too much," Richards explained, noting that having both Saka and Jude Bellingham dropping deep creates a spacing issue. "You can't have two of them coming towards the ball, unless you play someone who's willing to run in behind from a midfield area," he added, calling it a tactical conundrum.
But while pundits fret over tactical balance, Saka's status as a beloved figure remains untouched. Speaking on The Bill Simmons Podcast, comedian Adam Friedland declared him his absolute favorite player, praising him as "the guy at 17 who pulled Arsenal out of, like, just the worst period in our history."
Whether Saka can overcome his Achilles issues to rescue England in the same way remains the big question. With Thomas Tuchel admitting that his star winger is currently unable to train on consecutive days, England's World Cup campaign rests heavily on getting their favorite son back to full fitness.