Bukayo Saka

<p>Wembley curtain-raiser can offer clues but it is no reliable pointer to a season – its winners have not landed the title since 2018</p><p>The doubt for anyone when a long-strived-for goal has been achieved is hunger. Arsenal waited 22 years for their 14th league title and, compounding the yearning, finished second three times in a row before finally lifting the Premier League trophy in May. The physical exertions of last season were immense – as seen by Declan Rice’s clear exhaustion and Bukayo Saka’s intermittent contributions at the World Cup, where William Saliba <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jul/22/arsenal-william-saliba-back-injury-france-world-cup">picked up a back injury</a> – but so too was the emotional strain.</p><p>The first weeks of a new season after a major tournament, especially the World Cup, are often a little erratic anyway, but this feels like a particularly unpredictable start to a campaign. Nine of the 20 Premier League clubs have changed ma

Bukayo Saka's hat trick helped England survive a dramatic second-half comeback to beat France 6-4 in Saturday's chaotic third-place playoff.

England nearly blew a four-goal lead against France as Bukayo Saka’s hat-trick gave the Three Lions a remarkable 6-4 bronze medal win in Miami to achieve their best World Cup finish since 1966.

Bukayo Saka scores a hat-trick as England beat France 6-4 in a thriller to record their best men's World Cup finish since 1966.

<ul><li><p>France beaten 6-4 on ‘very emotional’ day for squad</p></li><li><p>‘This will help – but you never fully celebrate bronze’</p></li></ul><p>Thomas Tuchel has said England’s players can be proud of their efforts after a thrilling <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jul/19/england-france-world-cup-third-place-playoff-match-report">6-4 victory over France</a> sealed third place at the World Cup for the first time.</p><p>England raced into a 4-0 lead at half-time thanks to goals from Declan Rice – the stand-in captain – Ezri Konsa and two from Bukayo Saka. But they were pegged back to within one goal after Didier Deschamps, taking charge of his final France game after 14 years, rang the changes at the break. Kylian Mbappé took his tally at this tournament to 10 goals and 22 at World Cups in total as he pushed to win a second successive Golden Boot and surpassed Lionel Messi’s all-time record. The Argentina forward will have a chance to overhaul him in Sunday’s fina

England claimed third place at the 2026 World Cup with a 6-4 victory over France in a remarkable third-place play-off at Miami Stadium. Bukayo Saka scored a hat-trick to earn Player of the Match honou...

Bukayo Saka was the star of the show as England secured third place at the World Cup with a win over France.

Bukayo Saka revealed he "wanted to play more" at the World Cup after scoring a hat-trick to earn England a bronze medal against France - after Thomas Tuchel tactically left him out of the semi-final loss to Argentina.