I'll keep gambling with fitness for England - Saka — Sport

Bukayo Saka has made 49 appearances for England

Published 15 June 2026

Bukayo Saka has stated he will keep taking risks with his fitness and is "ready to go" for England's World Cup opener against Croatia on Wednesday.

The Arsenal winger has been managing an Achilles problem since March and has had his minutes carefully monitored for both Arsenal and the national team.

Saka sat out the March international break due to the injury and missed seven matches for the Gunners, but he returned to help his club side win the Premier League title for the first time in 22 years.

England manager Thomas Tuchel has acknowledged he must "take care" of the 24-year-old and that it is "very unlikely" Saka would "start and finish" all of the World Cup matches.

However, when asked if he is prepared to play the entirety of England's opening match in Dallas, Saka said he is ready to be chosen.

"I don't want to say anything that goes against the manager," Saka said.

"What I would say is that between Mikel [Arteta] and the Arsenal medical team and Thomas [Tuchel] and the England medical team, since March they have managed me amazingly and helped me get back on the pitch and do what I can for the team.

"I'm feeling better than I have felt in the last few months and I'm ready to go."

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Saka, who will earn his 50th cap for England in his next outing, played 27 minutes of England's warm-up match against Costa Rica as Tuchel managed the forward's workload.

The winger was substituted in the Champions League final when Arsenal lost to Paris-St Germain in Budapest, with the scoreline level at the time of his withdrawal.

Saka's display in that game drew criticism, but when asked if he finds it frustrating being evaluated while not fully fit, he described it as a "gamble" he is willing to accept.

"Yeah, but I think as players it's the biggest gamble, especially if you're not feeling your sharpest. You have the choice whether you don't play or you put yourself out there knowing that people are going to judge you the same," Saka said.

"And at the end of the day people don't really care how you're feeling, they expect you to deliver, they expect you to perform.

"I'm happy to take that gamble and it paid off I'd say, and I'm going to continue doing that - but like I said I'm feeling a lot better than I did in March and I'm ready to go, so I'm excited."

Saka is competing for a starting role on the right wing with Arsenal teammate Noni Madueke, but he says that despite vying for playing time at both club and international level, they wish the best for one another.

"It's quite unique, two players that play in the same position to be as close as we are," Saka said.

"I don't really know how it works, but it works. Noni is like my brother on and off the pitch. We push each other and we speak every day.

"We have that mutual respect for each other and we want each other to do well.

"The good thing is that we play on the same team and that if one of us is doing well it is good for the other."

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Saka says he's 'ready to go' after his recent injury struggles

Arsenal's 'starboy' - but should England take a risk on Saka?

Every manager who works with Saka ends up saying the same thing: "We have to be careful."

During his tenure as England boss, Sir Gareth Southgate frequently discussed tailoring Saka's schedule and avoiding unnecessary strain.

In the 2023-24 campaign - the busiest season of his career - Saka featured in 59 matches, logged 4,756 minutes and completed 26 full games.

It was also his most productive: 21 goals and 15 assists, numbers that placed him among Europe's elite wide forwards.

But the toll was evident. He was kicked, clattered, targeted and eventually, something gave - a hamstring tear that Arsenal boss Arteta described as an "accumulation" injury.

Since then, the Gunners have adopted a more cautious strategy, but the statistics still highlight the magnitude of Saka's workload: 153 matches, 11,154 minutes and 61 full games across the past three seasons.

Now, Tuchel faces the same challenge that confronted Southgate.

Saka is too important to omit, too influential to rotate lightly, and too valuable to exhaust.

England do not need him to play every minute - they need him available for the right ones.