Interview

Saka - Freddie went out of his way to help me

Bukayo Saka has paid tribute to Freddie Ljungberg following the news that the Arsenal legend is leaving the club.

Saka enjoyed a breakthrough campaign in 2019/20 and was championed by Ljungberg ever since the Swede took over as our under-15s coach.

Ljungberg is leaving for new challenges but Saka won't forget how much he's done for him.

"The first time I met him, of course I was quite young so I was obviously in awe of him because he was a legend for Arsenal and he played in many successful Arsenal teams," said Saka.

"As soon as we started to work with him he always gave me advice because he played in my position as well. He gave me different advice on running in behind, finishing techniques, little things that have also helped my game.



"He knows the game as much as anyone else. He's been there and played in the Premier League for many years. He would normally tell me how a game was going to go. If I was playing against a certain opponent, [he would tell me] how I'm going to match up against him and what I need to do to get the better of him, his weaknesses and stuff like that. He'd help me with that and of course on the mentality side he'd always encourage me. In all the aspects of the game, he was always trying to help me.

He's always gone out of his way to help me and push me to progress to the next level, so I'm grateful for all the work he's done and I wish him all the best wherever he goes."