Who has more potential, Saka or Smith Rowe?

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Who has more potential, Saka or Smith Rowe?

By Oscar Maung-Haley

But if Smith Rowe, who is already operating at an impressive level, can match Saka’s development, Arsenal have two players who can help them compete at the highest level.

They’ve both played an integral role in helping Arsenal turn things around this season.

The question is, which one of Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe has more potential?

The case for Saka

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We’ll start with star boy Bukayo Saka.

The term generational gets bandied about a lot when it comes to youth team players who achieve a small amount of success at the highest level, such is the pitfalls of modern football.

But I’m confident enough to state that Bukayo Saka is generational.

At just 20, he’s already made 13 appearances for England and made 100 appearances for the Gunners. At just 20.

And it’s not as if he’s been brought along like Manchester City have done with Phil Foden.

From day one, Saka has been thrown in at the deep end, relied upon to help Arsenal first team since he became a regular in the senior side in the 2019/20 season.

It terms of potential, the sky’s the limit for Saka.

He has started the season a bit slowly this year, and that’s to be expected given he was in action for England during the summer.

But Saka’s potential ranks among the best talent in world football.

The case for Smith Rowe


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We’ll start by stating that while Emile Smith Rowe is good, he’s not as good as Bukayo Saka just yet.

The Croydon De Bruyne has made an excellent start to the season this year, scoring three goals in the opening 10 Premier League fixtures.

Last season saw the 21-year-old break into the Arsenal side on a regular basis, with the midfielder making 33 appearances in all competitions.

It is remarkable that he’s actually a year older than Saka, which is probably more of a testament to Saka than a knock on Smith Rowe.

In terms of time on the pitch, Smith Rowe is younger than Saka.

And as a result, Saka, despite being a year younger, is ahead in his football development.

That’s not to say Smith Rowe doesn’t have potential or couldn’t be better than Saka in time.

But with where they’re at right now, Smith Rowe is just behind Saka in terms of potential.

Conclusion

It’s a nice problem to have really.

Both Saka and Smith Rowe would be the crown jewels in almost every Premier League club when it comes to young talent.

The fact that both are producing at the highest level at this stage of their career is a testament to their talent.

And in actual fact, the argument of who has more potential is really quite reductive.

Right now, Saka is ahead in terms of his development. He’s a bit more versatile given he can operate in a number of positions.

PHOTO CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES

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