Arsenal and England's Bukayo Saka forced off injured three weeks before World Cup

Arsenal's Bukayo Saka leaves the pitch after being substituted due to injury during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Nottingham Forest on 30 October, 2022 at the Emirates Stadium, London, United Kingdom
(Image credit: Alex Pantling / Getty Images)

England will be sweating on the fitness of Bukayo Saka after the Arsenal winger picked up an injury in the first half of the Gunners' Premier League clash with Nottingham Forest – just three weeks before the World Cup gets underway.

With just over 25 minutes on the clock at the Emirates Stadium, Saka went down and was unable to continue – having earlier set up Gabriel Martinelli for the opening goal of the game.

The nature of the 21-year-old's injury is unclear at this stage, although he was able to walk off the pitch unassisted. Reiss Nelson came on in his place.

And fans of Arsenal and England alike will be hoping that Saka hasn't done anything serious: Mikel Arteta's side still have four matches between now and the World Cup – where Gareth Southgate's Three Lions begin their campaign against Iran in 22 days' time.

Saka has started all 10 of Arsenal's league fixtures this term, scoring four goals and providing nine assists. He's won 20 caps for England and, if fit, is bound to be one of the first names on the team sheet in Qatar.

Tom Hancock

Tom Hancock started freelancing for FourFourTwo in April 2019 and has also written for the Premier League and Opta Analyst, among others. He supports Wycombe Wanderers and has a soft spot for Wealdstone. A self-confessed statto, he has been known to watch football with a spreadsheet (or several) open...