Saka's return shows what Arsenal missed and what could be

Winger's absence through injury was keenly felt but his availability opens up new possibilities for Arteta's side

- David Hytner

It was a brilliant teaser, one that had Arsenal fans smiling and shaking their heads, protesting loudly, essentially calling it immoral. Deal or no deal. They win the Premier League title. But they sell Bukayo Saka.

It was posted by the @goalglobal TikTok account at the start of last season and the reactions of those in front of the camera shone a light on just how loved Saka is at Arsenal.

The consensus was no deal. It would not be worth it because some things just mean more. "That's our star boy, that's like your son," one of the supporters said. The video was liked by 3 million people.

Rewind to the summer of 2021 when Saka reported for pre-season training after his penalty shootout miss for England in the European Championship final defeat against Italy. He had received horrific online abuse but he was led to a wall of supportive messages from the Arsenal community, hundreds and hundreds of them.

One young fan invited Saka for a kickaround in the park and promised to "let him win".

A few days later, Saka played in a friendly against Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

There is no such thing as a friendly between these rivals and yet the Spurs fans applauded Saka. Had they ever done such a thing for an Arsenal player?

Every Premier League club has its heroes. But it is perfectly possible that none have one quite like Saka at present, not only a symbol of pretty much everything - an academy product, a supporter himself - but a player who has been on board throughout an exciting journey, one that began at a low ebb when Mikel Arteta took over as the manager in December 2019.