Darren Bent says ‘incredible’ Arsenal player has looked exhausted recently

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Arsenal have been off their game as of late.

The Gunners have now lost three consecutive games, and it goes without saying that the performances from Mikel Arteta’s side have been lacking.

Arsenal’s key players haven’t been at the races as of late, and speaking on the Kelly and Wrighty Show, Darren Bent has earmarked three players for a bit of criticism.

Bent says that both Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard are nowhere near where they were last season, while he also notes that Bukayo Saka looks as though he’s in need of a decent rest after a gruelling schedule recently.

Saka needs a rest

Bent shared his verdict on the ‘incredible’ winger and his fitness.

“It has to be, Martinelli last season was fantastic, he’s been nowhere near the levels, Odegaard scored 15 goals last season, he’s nowhere near the levels, I think Saka’s numbers are similar but he looks like he needs a rest, we’re playing him every minute of every game, I can understand that dip,” Bent said.

Run into the ground

As Bent says, Saka has played almost every minute of every game over the past few years, and we wouldn’t blame him at all if he was a bit burnt out.

Simply put, the 22-year-old has played too much football, and we wouldn’t blame him at all if he is indeed feeling the strain.

Unfortunately for Saka, giving key players a rest is much easier said than done when you’re in the middle of a title race, and especially when there isn’t a like-for-like replacement for Saka in Arsenal’s squad right now.

Saka could really do with a few weeks off to recharge his batteries, but it’s hard to imagine that he will be afforded such a luxury.

Let’s hope that Arsenal can find a way to manage Saka’s minutes going forwards.