Arsenal boss Arteta praises Saka after memorable return

Loveable Hale End graduate marked end of 101-day injury nightmare by grabbing what turned out to be winner 

Mikel Arteta has hailed fit-again Bukayo Saka after a memorable return to Arsenal action.

The loveable Hale End graduate marked the end of his 101-day injury absence by grabbing what turned out to be the winner to beat Fulham 2-1 in a low key London derby marred by the loss of Gabriel and Jurrien Timber. 

The attacker nodded home a sublime Gabriel Martinelli touch a mere seven minutes after coming on to put the Gunners 2-0  up against the west Londoners

Speaking after the match, Arteta said: “It was a beautiful reaction from our people to show him that love, respect and admiration and he fully deserves.

"His reaction straight away after scoring was to say thank you to all the sports scientists, physios and everyone who has participated in his recovery.

"It tells you who he is as a person, so it's impossible not to love him.

Arteta added: “He's trained with us for the last nine days, and he’s been impressive straight away.

"The problem that we put for him was very demanding by respecting the timeframes because we knew that the moment that we throw him in, he needs to be ready because it's the most important part of the season, so, I'm really pleased with that.”