29 October 2023 , 12:17
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Bukayo Saka wore the Arsenal captain’s armband like a crown and gushed: “To be at the front, leading the boys out, was just unbelievable.”
The England winger stepped in to deputise for rested skipper Martin Odegaard for the first time and led Arsenal to a more comfortable win than a sailor’s hammock on shore leave. Saka beamed after Saturday’s 5-0 victory at home to struggling Sheffield United: “You know me and you know where I’ve come from - the academy.
“I’m lost for words - it’s hard to describe this feeling, it’s just amazing. It was a different experience. Obviously I was learning on the job and sometimes I didn’t know where I was supposed to be! But in the end we played well, which was the most important thing.”
Arsenal face a tricky week, with a Carabao Cup derby at West Ham followed by a trip to Newcastle, but Saka told the club website: “It’s looking good and we need to continue to build on this.”
Meanwhile, Sheffield United captain Ollie Norwood insists that he and teammates must shoulder the blame for the Blades' woeful start - and was steadfast in his support for manager Paul Heckingbottom. Skipper Norwood exonerated Heckingbottom - dealt a dreadful hand with a mounting injury crisis - and claimed: “It's on us, as players, to turn it around.”
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The Blades didn't lay a glove on Arsenal but Norwood said: “He’s not going out there and playing - it’s on us, it’s not on the manager. He has done an incredible job to get us promoted last season, with everything that was going on in the background.
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Bukayo Saka captained Arsenal in their 5-0 victory over Sheffield United (David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)“He’s working as hard as he can. Let’s be honest, the level of blame has to be put to us as players. We’re not doing our job out there, are we? We’re losing every week. There’s no-one not playing for the manager or hoping he gets sacked. That’s not the case. We want him as manager, we respect him and appreciate how hard he’s working.”
Heckingbottom added: “We know we are down to the bare bones, but the boys getting the opportunity need to grasp it. This is the level we’re at. We’ve worked so hard to get here, no-one will take it easy on us, but it is fair to say Arsenal away won’t define our season.”