Port Vale fans targeted Arsenal star Bukayo Saka with boos and a ruthless chant during their Carabao Cup clash at Vale Park.
The final matches of the Carabao Cup third round were played on Wednesday night, as four Premier League sides secured their place in the round of 16.
Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United all secured dominant wins over League One opposition in the opening fixtures of the evening.
Meanwhile Arsenal claimed a 2-0 win over League One's Port Vale, with summer signing Eberechi Eze scoring his first goal for the club to take the lead, shortly before the draw was made for fourth round was made.
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But the scoreline doesn't reflect what was ultimately a tough game, particularly for Saka after Port Vale fans continued to boo him and sing a brutal chant while he was on the pitch.
When Arsenal's lineup for the match was released, fans were excited to see Saka make his first start in four weeks after missing three games with a hamstring injury.
However, it was far from an easy return for the 24-year-old as the home fans welcomed him to Vale Park with chants of 'we saw you cry on the telly' while booing him anytime he was on the ball.
The chant is in reference to Saka's emotional display following England's loss to Spain in the final of Euro 2024 last year.
Just four years prior, the Arsenal and England winger was subjected to a wave of abuse after he was once of three players to miss a penalty in England's Euro 2020 shootout loss to Italy.
Thankfully, the chants didn't appear to have much of an impact on Saka as he want on to play 60 minutes before worryingly being taken off following a harsh tackle in the second half.
Mikel Arteta gives fresh Bukayo Saka injury update after Carabao Cup
Although Arsenal fans will have no doubt been concerned to see Saka come off before the full-time whistle, Arteta has since confirmed that his substitution was a planned move after his spell on the sidelines.
Speaking post-match the Arsenal manager said: “It was planned, 60 minutes was the maximum,” he said. “We had four, almost five players already in the line-up that we had to get him out for different reasons, especially for load because he was coming from long periods out.
“So we planned for that and the good thing is that nobody got injured, so there are no muscular issues. So that’s a very positive thing again.”
With that in mind, it is expected that Saka will once again be available to start for the Premier League meeting with Newcastle UnIted on Sunday afternoon.
Topics: Bukayo Saka, Arsenal, Carabao Cup, Football, Mikel Arteta
Ben McCrum