Gabriel Agbonlahor has warned one Arsenal star that he’s on the brink of potentially being dropped at Euro 2024.
The Gunners have seen a good number of players represent Arsenal in the knockout stage of the summer competition, with Kai Havertz and David Raya already through to the quarter-finals, along with Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice for England.
With Havertz and Rice both catching the eye in their round of 16 wins, there’s a strong chance that an Arsenal player could end this summer as a European champion given the nature of the ties that are coming up for certain nations.
Yet former Aston Villa striker Agbonlahor believes one Arsenal star could soon be dropped.
Agbonlahor suggests Bukayo Saka could be dropped by England
Speaking on TalkSport, the three-time England international made the unusual claim that Saka could be dropped from England’s starting XI to face Switzerland on Saturday, along with a number of other regulars under Gareth Southgate.
With Saka playing all 120 minutes last night against Slovakia and playing in three different positions, it’s clear that England are not going to drop the Arsenal winger anytime soon given his importance in the starting XI.
READ MORE: Every Arsenal player at Euro 2024 as 11 stars represent their nations
Moreover, with Saka making the most dribbles out of any player on the night, the 22-year-old offers England an important outlet in the attack, one that few forwards can offer for the Three Lions if given the opportunity.
Agbonlahor said when asked which England players faced being dropped by Southgate ahead of Saturday’s tie against Switzerland: “Saka is borderline being dropped for me as well on that right-hand side for Cole Palmer.”
English media’s treatment towards Saka this Euros has been plain weird
From immense calls for Saka to start at left-back to now being suggested as a player who can be dropped, the Arsenal winger has, once again, been subject to some truly questionable treatment from the media.
Even with Saka being one of the few England players who has managed a goal contribution at the Euros on the back of his best season yet for Arsenal, there’s always something that seems to cause annoyance with former players now working in the media.
And Agbonlahor’s latest claim could be the most egregious of all, with Saka doing nothing to warrant a suggestion as dramatic as being dropped, especially after the shift the forward put in last night against Slovakia.
Arteta has Arsenal stars in Marbella whilst Bukayo Saka struggles at Euro 2024
In this week’s episode, Will Jones and Rahul Lakhani discussed England’s recent poor performances at the European Championships. With Arsenal players Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka receiving mixed reviews for England so far, Gareth Southgate’s tactical decisions were questioned.
There was some talk about the members of the Arsenal squad currently on a surprise training camp with Mikel Arteta in Marbella, as well as a brief look at how Gabriel Magalhaes and Gabriel Martinelli are getting on at the Copa America with Brazil.
