Bukayo Saka believes Arsenal sent a warning to the rest of Europe with their thumping 5-1 Champions League win at Sporting Lisbon.
Goals from Gabriel Martinelli, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Magalhaes, Saka and Leandro Trossard got the Gunners’ continental campaign back on track in style following the 1-0 defeat at Inter Milan last time out.
They also survived a sticky period at the start of the second half, when Goncalo Inacio pulled one back for Sporting, only for Saka’s nerveless penalty to make it 4-1 and sway the match back in Arsenal’s favour.
“I thought it did give us the momentum back,” Saka told the club’s website.
“Against a team like this there’s always going to be a period where we’re under pressure. We conceded one but the rest of it we dealt with it quite well.
“We showed ourselves on the top level. The away fans were top, I could hear them all game, I really enjoyed the atmosphere.
“We were really hungry. We knew what we wanted to do today and make a statement, so we feel like we did that.”
The Gunners had failed to win or score in both of their Champions League matches on their travels so far this season, but they ended up registering their biggest away victory in the competition since beating Inter by the same scoreline in 2003.
“I was most proud of not letting the occasion affect us,” Saka added.
“We knew this was a big game. We lost our last Champions League game and we haven’t won in Europe in many, many games. I don’t remember the last time we even scored a goal away in Europe.
“We just went out there with full confidence like that didn’t even happen, so I’m really proud of that.
“I think it’s our biggest Champions League away win in over 20 years. We came and played against a top team who hasn’t lost at home this season so we’re really proud of ourselves and we need to keep going like this.”
💬 "We showed ourselves tonight on the top level."
Bukayo Saka was delighted with the way we went about tonight's 5-1 victory over Sporting Lisbon 👇
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) November 26, 2024
The victory lifted Arsenal to seventh in the 36-team table, with Sporting dropping to eighth after their first defeat of the season.
The Portuguese champions had thrashed Manchester City 4-1 earlier this month, before head coach Ruben Amorim left to join Manchester United, and midfielder Morten Hjulmand admitted the Gunners were a level above.
“They had more players in midfield. We could feel that on the pitch, they’re a tough opponent,” he said.
“It didn’t go well, we’re not satisfied and we need to do better.”
