LONDON: Bukayo Saka led Arsenal to victory in the Champions League on Wednesday but was left with some regrets after being denied his first hat trick for his boyhood club by one of his teammates.
The England winger had already scored twice against Monaco at Emirates Stadium when he sent a shot toward goal in the 88th minute. The shot might have been saved by the goalkeeper, but it deflected rather unwittingly off the shin of Kai Havertz and into the net to seal a 3-0 win for Arsenal.
“He got in the way of it,” Saka said about Havertz, laughing, “but don’t worry, it’s (a hat trick) coming. It’s on the way.”
Still, with three goal contributions, Saka was again decisive for Arsenal and manager Mikel Arteta said the 23-year-old right winger was on his way to reaching a world-class level.
“You have to be able to do that consistently throughout many years to put yourself in that position,” Arteta said. “We can compare what he’s done in his first six years of professional football, which is exceptional, you know, and that’s it and his aim is to improve. He has the players and environment to continue to do that and I’m sure he will.”
Amid injury problems in defense, 18-year-old Myles Lewis-Skelly was handed a Champions League debut and played at left back, where he has featured a number of times as a substitute in the Premier League this season.
The highly rated Lewis-Skelly said he was taking inspiration from Saka, who also came out of the Arsenal academy as a teenager.
“Looking up to Bukayo, he has that mindset, he has everything,” he said. “I’ve learned a lot from him and I want to keep learning.”
Arsenal climbed to third place in the 36-team standings with the win.
Saka denied a first Arsenal hat trick by his own teammate in Champions League win
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Saka denied a first Arsenal hat trick by his own teammate in Champions League win
- The England winger had already scored twice against Monaco at Emirates Stadium when he sent a shot toward goal in the 88th minute
- The ball deflected rather unwittingly off the shin of Kai Havertz and into the net to seal a 3-0 win for Arsenal
Pepper, Narine lead Abu Dhabi Knight Riders to ILT20 Qualifier 2 with win over Dubai Capitals
- The win sets up a Qualifier 2 clash with MI Emirates on Friday, with a place in Sunday’s final against Desert Vipers at stake
DUBAI: Abu Dhabi Knight Riders moved one win away from the International League T20 final after sealing a commanding 50-run victory over Dubai Capitals in the Eliminator at Dubai International Stadium on Thursday.
An impressive 122-run opening partnership between Michael Pepper and Phil Salt laid the foundation for the Knight Riders, before a disciplined bowling display, led by Sunil Narine, Jason Holder and Liam Livingstone, dismantled the Capitals’ chase.
The win sets up a Qualifier 2 clash with MI Emirates on Friday, with a place in Sunday’s final against Desert Vipers at stake.
Pepper continued his fine form with a fluent 72 off 49 deliveries, striking seven fours and three sixes, while Salt contributed 43 off 34 as the Knight Riders surged to 122 without loss.
Although the Capitals fought back strongly with the ball to restrict Abu Dhabi to 158/7, a late cameo from Holder (22 off 11) ensured a competitive total.
In reply, the Capitals never recovered from a bruising start as Abu Dhabi’s bowlers applied relentless pressure.
Holder struck early, Narine dominated through the powerplay and middle overs, and Livingstone delivered key blows as the Capitals were bundled out for 108. Narine, Holder and Livingstone finished with three wickets apiece.
Player of the match Narine said: “Winning games changes everything, it means a lot. We haven’t made the playoffs in three years, and that’s something we’ve been pushing hard for. It’s emotional because we’ve played good cricket before without getting the results.”
Dubai Capitals captain Mohammad Nabi was philosophical in defeat.
“At one point it looked like they might get close to 200, but we did well to pull things back with the ball. With the bat, though, we weren’t good enough as a unit,” he said.
“There wasn’t excessive turn, but they bowled very well to their areas. The plan was to rotate strike and avoid early wickets, but it didn’t come off.”
