Just how good is Arsenal and England star Bukayo Saka right now?

Arsenal and England midfielder Bukayo Saka is in the form of his late at the moment, and will only improve.

When you play for a club the size of Arsenal, you are bound to receive criticism. When Bukayo Saka missed the deciding penalty for England in their Euro 2020 final against Italy, it was the most he had been criticised in his life.

But, truth be told, ageing now at 21 years old Saka is Arsenal’s best player, by a long shot. And I don’t mean that as a dig to his teammates either as they have played exceptionally well to get to top of league – Saka is just a different level.

The concern for a lot of England fans is whether he would transfer this form onto the international stage. It is unfortunately within the nature of England fans to doubt their young players, which can result in a self-fulfilling prophecy.

But Saka is his own harshest critic. He knows his strengths and weaknesses better than anyone else in the world – there is nothing he can be told about his playing style that he hasn’t already acknowledged, addressed and improved.

In England’s opening game against Iran yesterday, Saka silenced his critics in the way he knows best. Scoring a brace and winning man of the match, the Arsenal star proved why he should be in this starting XI.

Saka is a direct player. Whenever he has the ball at his feet, the first thing he thinks about is to run at and dribble past his opposition. When his dribble is completed, it leaves plenty of space for his team to get into promising positions, as seen a multitude of times in yesterday’s match.

Saka is often compared with Foden as they play in similar positions. I will not be adding any fuel to this ridiculous conversation – Foden is a terrific player and he will, and should be given a chance in this England setup too. But for now, Saka is playing exceptionally well, and it should be a real breath of fresh air for Gareth Southgate and England.

What do you make of Bukayo Saka’s recent performances?