Arsenal and England’s Bukayo Saka has been compared to Lionel Messi following his cameo performance against Germany to help England fight back from 2-0 down to draw 3-3.
After struggling as a left wing-back against Italy, the 20-year-old was thrown on by Gareth Southgate as part of a game-changing double substitution with Mason Mount as England looked out of ideas and more likely to concede again than get themselves on the scoresheet.
However, along with the Chelsea man, Saka changed the tide, with the youngster involved in all three goals. He was part of the build-up for the first, before providing the assist for the second and it was his pass to Jude Bellingham that saw the latter felled to win the Three Lions a penalty.
Showed great character tonight and we deserved more in the end !
Thank you Wembley for your support 🏴❤️ pic.twitter.com/dGwZjJRCyC— Bukayo Saka (@BukayoSaka87) September 26, 2022
He even came close to adding a fourth, with only a fingertip save by Marc Andre Ter Stegen preventing his low shot from finding the bottom corner after some great work from Harry Kane.
And, after the game, Saka took to Instagram to thank the fans for their support and to applaud his side’s character.
This drew plenty of praise in the comments section, with Arsenal teammate Aaron Ramsdale commenting ‘starboy’, while Jack Grealish and Reece James contributed emojis.
Of course, comparison to the likes of Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo is among the highest praise any player can receive, and while the Englishman has been in fine form so far this season for table-topping Arsenal, he has a long way to go to match either. But, it is a reflection of how highly he is regarded across the England squad.
