Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka appeared to make Premier League history in the Gunners' 4-2 win over Leicester City on Saturday, only to be denied an unprecedented record by an own-goal ruling.
The 23-year-old - who stood in as Arsenal's captain for the visit of the Foxes - came into gameweek six having provided an assist in each of his first five games of the 2024-25 top-flight campaign.
No player had ever set up a goal in the first six gameweeks of a Premier League campaign, but Saka appeared to have etched his name into the record books in added time, when his corner found Leandro Trossard at the back post.
The Belgian winger connected with Saka's cross first time and wheeled away in celebration after the ball ended up in the back of the net, although it took a significant deflection off of Wilfred Ndidi on its way in.
The goal was eventually credited as an Ndidi own goal, ending Saka's stellar run of assists in the Premier League and denying him an unparalleled sextet of consecutive helpers, despite Arteta's post-match plea.
Arteta 'hoped' Trossard was credited for third goal
© Imago
Asked about Trossard's injury-time intervention going down as an own goal, Arteta told the media: "Hopefully not, it's disappointing because today he has done so much to score the amount of situations that he had, and anyway his contribution to the team has been really good today."
Saka's record that never was paled into insignificance, though, as Ndidi's dramatic own goal preceded a last-gasp Kai Havertz effort in a six-goal spectacular, in which Arsenal would ostensibly drop points for the third time in four league games.
Gabriel Martinelli's drought-ending goal and Trossard's fine first put the Gunners in cruise control, only for an unlikely source in James Justin to claw the Foxes level with a deflected header and sensational volley.
Arsenal's plucky victory saw Arteta's men go level on 14 points with Manchester City, who could only manage a 1-1 draw with Newcastle United in the lunchtime kickoff after cracks began to show in Arteta and Pep Guardiola's otherwise cordial relationship.
As the fallout from last weekend's 2-2 draw continued, Arteta responded to accusations of 'dark arts' from his team by insisting that he knew about what went on at Man City, albeit while maintaining a cryptic tone and refusing to go into specifics.
Arteta responds to Guardiola's "war" remark
© Imago
Guardiola subsequently called on Arteta to make his admission clearer and speculated whether his comments were referring to their 115 charges for allegedly breaching financial rules, while also affirming that his side will declare "war" on Arsenal if they want one.
However, the Arsenal boss insisted that he was referring to City's work ethic earlier in the week, saying: "I can repeat it very clear, I love Pep, I have admired him since I was 10 years old. I respect him profoundly I am so grateful for everything he did for me and continues to do with me, I consider him a friend.
"I love and I respect every member of the staff there because I worked with them for four years, and when I say I know them, it's I know how hard they work. I haven't seen a human being work as hard as Pep, and the coaches and everybody in that football club to be consistently winning, and the reason they are there is because they maintain that hunger and this is exactly what I learn and exactly what I mean.
"It cannot be any more clear than that. If you want I can repeat it, if someone wants to damage a relationship that's not in my hands. That feeling is profound, he knows it, the staff know it. I still maintain today with them, with the board, with the ownership, with everybody and if it not it wouldn't be genuine and it is."
Arsenal sit third in the Premier League table following Liverpool's evening victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers and have two full days to recover before they host Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Ben Knapton
