Bukayo Saka’s stellar season continued for Arsenal in their 5-2 win at West Ham United on Saturday, with the 23-year-old star setting marks unmatched across the main European leagues.
The Arsenal winger provided two assists and scored one goal in an entertaining first half at the London Stadium.
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That pair of assists took Saka's season total to 10, making him the first player to reach double figures for assists in Europe’s top five leagues. The nearest to him is Arsenal team-mate Nuno Tavares, who has provided eight assists on loan at Lazio.
Saka reached 10 assists in the opening 13 Premier League matches of a season, a rate that only three players can beat: Cesc Fabregas in 2014/15 (12 matches), Mesut Ozil in 2015/16 (also 12) and Harry Kane in 2020/21 (11). However, Saka missed the 1-0 defeat at AFC Bournemouth so has played only 12 matches, which is the second-fewest appearances to hit double figures for assists in the Premier League.
Fewest appearances to 10 PL assists
| Player | Season | Apps |
| Mesut Ozil | 2015/16 | 11 |
|---|---|---|
| Harry Kane | 2020/21 | 11 |
| Cesc Fabregas | 2014/15 | 12 |
| Bukayo Saka | 2024/25 | 12 |
| Cesc Fabregas | 2009/10 | 13 |
It also means he is on course to eclipse the record for most assists in a season, which is jointly held by Arsenal’s Thierry Henry and Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne, who provided 20 assists each in 2002/03 and 2019/20 respectively.
His penalty to complete the first-half scoring meant that Saka also became the first player to net a goal and assist in three consecutive appearances for Arsenal in all competitions since Fabregas, who did so in four successive matches in September 2007.
Saka had scored one goal and assisted another in the 3-0 home win over Nottingham Forest in the Premier League a week before, then scored and supplied two assists in the 5-1 UEFA Champions League victory over Sporting on Wednesday.
In the Premier League, Saka has been involved in 15 goals (five goals and 10 assists) this season, only one behind Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah (10 goals and six assists).
Indeed Saka would have gone level with the Egyptian for 16 goal involvements had he not handed the ball to captain Martin Odegaard to score Arsenal's first penalty of the evening.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta hailed Saka’s “incredible” consistency in his goal contributions.
“It's the hardest thing to do in football,” Arteta said. “So a player that can deliver those moments and impact the scoreline in that way, you know, the value of that is tremendous. And even if the opponent knows it, he continues to do it. And that's a big credit to him.”
As for Saka, he is trying to stay grounded. “I’m happy so far but you know, I have to keep going,” he said. “I can’t get complacent. It’s a long season and we’re only in November so, I need to continue like this.”
And although he helped to guide Arsenal to a third victory in a row in all competitions, he has already his eye on the next big match, in four days, at home to Manchester United.
“We’ve built a lot of momentum now,” he said. “We’ve played really well the last three games, not just the results were good but also the way we played so we’re happy, we’re confident and we’re going to take it into the next game which, we know is a big one.
“We’re feeling good, we’re feeling ready for it, confident, so, let’s go!”
