Havertz, Odegaard and White help Saka get back to best

[Getty Images] Bukayo Saka's performance in Arsenal's impressive opening-day win over Coventry has already convinced some fans the Gunners are going to successfully defend their Premier League crown. The 24-year-old's game time for the north London outfit was managed at the end of last season, as well as with England at the World Cup, because of an Achilles injury he picked up in March. Saka returned from the World Cup and, after a break, rejoined the Arsenal squad, playing his first minutes of this season in the Community Shield, coming on when the Gunners were already leading Manchester City 3-0. His acceleration and sharpness during that cameo was something that was lacking towards the end of last season as the winger looked to help his team get over the line. And after his starring performance in the first Premier League game of the season, he hinted that after low minutes at the World Cup and a summer break he felt back to his best. "I was training a lot so I could be ready for the start of the season and ready to help the team in the way I know I can," Saka said after the win. "It was more about balancing my time off and not having too much of a break. I took seven days off and then started to train again. "I've put in a lot of work since then and I'm feeling good. I just tried to come back in good shape, so I'm on top of my body." Another part of why Saka looks like he is in a flow state so early in the season is the return of Kai Havertz, Martin Odegaard and Ben White to full fitness. There is no debate that White and Saka's partnership down the right-hand side, with the defender's overlapping runs, unlock the best in Saka. The partnership he has with Odegaard and Havertz is also crucial to a fluid Arsenal attack and the win over Coventry was just the second time since December 2024 that the trio started a Premier League game together, such have been their injury problems.