England need Bukayo Saka, but can his body stand up to it?

The Arsenal forward has played an extraordinary amount of football with little prospect of a rest as Euro 2024 begins

Is Bukayo Saka a little burned out? After six years of almost always making himself available, is the Arsenal and England No 7 starting to feel the strain? Like so many overplayed youngsters before him, are these the first signs of a player whose body is starting to plead for a rest?

Unfortunately that isn’t really an option this summer. England expects Saka to be ready for Euro 2024. England expects Saka, who has played 52 games for club and country this season, to be raring to go when Gareth Southgate’s side take on Serbia in their opening game in Group C on Sunday. England will have to look past the fact that Saka, at the age of 22, has made 259 appearances for club and country, the first in November 2018.