"We stick together" - Bukayo Saka sends message on social media after Arsenal's loss to Newcastle

Bukayo Saka sent a three-word message to his teammates and Arsenal fans following their 1-0 defeat to Newcastle in the Premier League on Saturday (November 2). The England forward called for unity between his teammates.

Mikel Arteta’s men were handed their second defeat of their 2024-25 season at St James' Park. Newcastle claimed all three points, as a 12th-minute goal from Alexander Isak was enough to pull an upset.

The Gunners are now sitting in the fifth position on the Premier League table with 18 points after 10 games, seven points behind league leaders Liverpool. Their other defeat came against Bournemouth on October 19, as they succumbed to a 2-0 defeat at the Vitality Stadium.

However, Bukayo Saka, the team’s captain in Martin Odegaard’s absence, realized the setbacks they’ve had of late. He posted an Instagram story to call for unity. The 23-year-old shared the post-match graphic against Newcastle and wrote:

''We stick together!’’

Despite Arsenal’s disappointing results lately, Bukayo Saka has often made significant contributions. He has scored three goals and provided seven assists in nine Premier League games this season. The Gunners will be back in action on Wednesday (November 6) night when they take on Inter Milan in the Champions League.

Former Chelsea player wants Bukayo Saka to be stripped of Arsenal’s captaincy

Former Chelsea player Tony Cascarino has expressed his wish to see the captaincy role at Arsenal taken from Bukayo Saka. Cascarino believes the captaincy role is a distraction for Saka and that it doesn’t allow the youngster to play to the best of his ability.

After Martin Odegaard picked up an injury while on international duty, Arteta transferred the captaincy role to Saka. The 23-year-old wore the Arsenal captain’s armband for the first time in his career in October 2023 in a 5-0 win over Sheffield United in the Premier League.

However, Cascarino thinks the captaincy role is a burden on the Hale End graduate. He told talkSPORT:

“Bukayo Saka's a fantastic player, and I speak highly of him all the time, because I love his desire, his hunger, his goal, intelligence as a player, his assists. I just don't want him to be captain because I think he needs to be on his game and think about his game only."

“You've got Declan Rice in there. Give him the captain's armband. You've got Thomas Partey. I just feel you should be going, Saka, you play your game. I think certain players need to be just left to play their game. And when they're forwards, generally, whether it's a goal scorer or a winger, let them get on with it. I just think Arsenal have enough captains in there," he added.

“And this has taken nothing away from Saka, because I think he's a fabulous talent that needs to be. Just leave him to get on with his game," Cascarino concluded.

Since getting promoted to the senior team, Saka has scored 62 goals and provided 60 assists for the Gunners in 239 appearances across competitions.