Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has challenged Bukayo Saka to raise his ambitions in front of goal, insisting the winger should be targeting multiple goals per match rather than fixating on a seasonal tally.
Saka currently leads Arsenal's scoring charts this season with three goals from the club's opening six Premier League fixtures, though the number could easily have been higher. The 25-year-old has squandered several clear-cut opportunities in recent weeks, including a one-on-one chance against Leeds United's goalkeeper James Trafford that was saved in the dying moments of Saturday's match. Similar missed chances occurred during Arsenal's fixture against Sunderland and in their Champions League victory over Napoli.
The England international's most prolific campaign came in the 2023/24 season, when he found the net 16 times in the Premier League and 20 times across all competitions. With questions emerging about whether Saka could replicate or surpass that return, Arteta made clear that fixating on a specific end-of-season figure is the wrong approach entirely.
"No, I think the numbers should go to score two or three per game," Arteta said. "That's it. That's the mindset. And then if you score one, so be it, you score two, so be it, because he has the ability to score in many ways."
The Spanish coach elaborated that this match-by-match mentality applies broadly to his attacking players, warning against the complacency that can come with long-term targets. "But normally, if you go to all the attackers, and that's the way, I think you have to attack something. Because if you go '20, OK, now we are in October, I still have eight months to score 17 more goals.' That's not the mindset, that's not going to take you there," he explained.
Part of Arsenal's attacking strategy this season has involved positioning Saka more centrally and closer to goal, aiming to increase his involvement in high-percentage scoring chances. His goal against Coventry came from just six yards after the goalkeeper spilled the ball, while his decisive strike against Aston Villa was scored from even tighter range following a clever run that allowed him to meet a low cross at the near post.
That pattern extended into the recent international break, where Saka found the net twice for England against Croatia. His first goal came from close range in the six-yard box after exploiting space to receive a pass, and his second arrived in a similar area when he capitalized on a defensive error.
"That is where we need to get him," Arteta said of Saka's increasingly central role inside the penalty area.
The Arsenal boss remained confident that the missed opportunities would not define Saka's campaign, pointing to the broader pattern of chances being created. "If he misses the chance, so be it. At the end, the more volume we generate, the bigger the probability of him scoring more goals. He has been getting in great positions, getting shots, getting one-touch finishes and tap-ins," Arteta said. "That is the kind of unpredictability we have with that player, otherwise we know how the opponent is going to defend him."
Arteta added that Saka's underlying numbers suggest the goals will come if the current approach continues. "He is doing well. He could have had another four or five goals by now, easily. But if he continues like that, we know [he will score more]," he said, before reiterating his central message about mentality: "When he talks about scoring a certain amount of goals, he needs to be thinking about scoring a certain amount of goals per game. If that shifts, that mentality, he will get into those positions and score more goals."
Based on reporting from Standard Sport.