After missing Arsenal's final game of the 2023/24 season, England's opening group game against Serbia was Bukayo Saka's first minutes in a competitive game since a 2-1 win at Old Trafford on the 12th of May against Manchester United.
Not only did Saka manage to get through 76 minutes on Sunday evening, he provided the match-winning assist for Jude Bellingham to send England top of Group C. But how has Saka's England career been since that night in London on the 11th of July 2021?
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The fall & rise
Everyone knows the awful abuse Saka and his teammates Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho received after missing penalties in the Euro's final in 2021, but little is said about how the 22-year-old has reacted since for the national team.
In 25 games since his penalty miss, Saka has contributed to 16 goals for his country, including his first and only senior hat-trick to date in a 7-0 annihilation of North Macedonia in 2023.
He is now considered an integral part of Gareth Southgate's team, making that right-wing spot his very own. Saka started every game in the 2022 winter World Cup, bar the game against Wales where he was rested, proving how important the England manager sees Arsenal's star boy.
While the previous Euro's would have definitely had a negative impact on Saka, it didn't take him long to shake it off and become one of England's most important players.
The same can't be said for his international teammates who missed the two spot kicks prior to Saka's however. Sancho has only featured once for Southgate since the final, in a World Cup qualifier back in 2021.
While Rashford was selected for the 2022 World Cup, and featured in every game. He has also played nine times since the tournament in Qatar, although he only started four of these games. This isn't about putting these individuals down though, it is about showing how well Saka has reacted since that night.
Having only been 19 years old at the time, this could have been detrimental to Saka and really hampered his career. Instead, he has gone on to become one of the best young players in the world, and is among the most important players for both his club and country.
Not only this, he is a great person off the pitch. You can see it in the way he comes across in interviews and other media bits he does with Arsenal and England, a humble and genuine character who just loves playing football and right now is enjoying every second of it.
Long may this continue for both club and country, where it will only be a matter of time before Saka starts to add silverware to the performances he puts in week in, week out.
