Saka limps off in Arsenal's 2-2 draw at Bayern Munich

Arsenal left Munich with a point and a worry. Bukayo Saka went off after only 10 minutes of the 2-2 Champions League draw at Bayern Munich with a quadriceps injury, and manager Mikel Arteta did not hide his concern afterwards.

"It doesn't look good at all"

"It doesn't look good at all but we have to wait and see," Arteta said, according to The Guardian. "They [the medics] are a bit concerned. A player who has to come off with a really sharp pain is never good news." Arteta told TNT Sports the same, as quoted by BBC Sport. Both outlets report that Saka went down after a routine challenge, walked off slowly and was still moving in a very limited way as he left the stadium. There has been no official word on how long he could be out.

BBC Sport notes that the 25-year-old has had a series of fitness problems over the past year, including an Achilles injury picked up in March that cost him seven games, and a hamstring injury that required surgery in December 2024. It adds that Arsenal's win percentage is notably better with him in the side.

How the match unfolded

Eberechi Eze replaced Saka and gave Arsenal the lead, The Guardian reports. Bayern's Harry Kane then took over: he set up Alphonso Davies for the equaliser and put the hosts ahead from the penalty spot. Declan Rice earned Arsenal a point with an 82nd-minute equaliser.

Arteta said his team had prepared to win and were the better side in the first 25 minutes. "We take it, although that doesn't mean we are really happy about it," he said. He praised the "composure" and "spirit" of his players and singled out Eze's performance, both with and without the ball.

Who covers on the right

BBC Sport points out that Noni Madueke, who started on the left, switched to the right after Saka's exit and looked bright. Pundit Nedum Onuoha, speaking on the Champions League highlights programme, said Arsenal would miss Saka's "star power" but have enough wide options to cope while he recovers. Those options, BBC Sport adds, include Madueke, Eze and 16-year-old Max Dowman, while summer signing Christos Tzolis is currently out with a hamstring problem of his own.

Arteta also linked the injury to the strain of the competition. He pointed to the intensity of the PSG-Barcelona game earlier in the week, in which players were also hurt, and described the Champions League as man-to-man for 96 minutes with no breathing space.

The scale of the injury will only become clear after scans and assessment by the club's medical staff. Until then, the picture is Arteta's own: concerned, but not yet certain.