Bukayo Saka's 17-year-old 'difference' highlighted after Arsenal star emulates Romelu Lukaku with 100th PL goal involvement

Arsenal wing wizard Bukayo Saka was a 'different kid' to other 17 and 18-year-olds before reaching his latest Premier League milestone, Gunners expert Charles Watts has revealed to Sports Mole.

The 24-year-old recently came up with his 100th Premier League goal involvement on his 200th appearance in England's top flight, converting a clinical penalty in Saturday's 2-0 victory over West Ham United.

Saka boasts 55 goals and 45 assists in the Premier League for Mikel Arteta's side, and only six players have hit a century of direct contributions in the competition in quicker time than the 2001-born Hale End graduate, who is the youngest to reach that milestone since a 23-year-old Romelu Lukaku in 2017.

Reacting to Saka's latest landmark achievement, Watts recalled the England international's breakout game against Eintracht Frankfurt in 2019, revealing that the then-teenager showed "no fear" as he conducted his first mixed zone after the game.

“He’s got that drive to make sure there's a lot more to come from him," Watts said. "He’s not going to rest on his laurels, he's not sitting there happy with 100 - he'll want to go a lot, lot higher than that - and I'm sure he absolutely will.

“One in two goal involvements since breaking into the team; when you think at the start of that run, quite a lot of those first 200 games were at left back and left wing back. He’s just a remarkable player, remarkable talent, a player to cherish.

"This kid's different" - Bukayo Saka's fearless teenage attitude remembered

“I always go back to this story; I was over in Germany when he scored his first Arsenal goal in the Europa League, a few of us have gone to the mixed zone to speak to some players. They said ‘we're going to bring Bukayo Saka out, it's the first time he'd ever spoken to a load of journalists, just be careful with him’.

“But the way he strode out, in the middle of this big huddle of journalists, there was no fear. So many times you talk to 17, 18-year-olds after games, they're really nervous, they can't really get their words out, but he was just so different to anyone that age that I'd spoken to before.

“There were just no nerves, he took everything in his stride. I just stood there thinking ‘this kid's different’. I could never have predicted what he's gone on to achieve, but you knew there was a talent there, you knew there was something in his head that made him stand out from a lot of other players. It’s fantastic to see what he’s done.”

Saka tucked away his 55th Premier League goal after Declan Rice broke the deadlock in that comfortable London derby success over the Hammers, who had previously beaten Arsenal twice in a row on home soil in the top flight.

However, Arteta's men never looked in danger of suffering a torrid third straight loss to the Irons at the Emirates, and they entered the game knowing that victory would lift them to the top of the Premier League table for at least a couple of hours.

Liverpool could have reclaimed top spot against Chelsea in the 5.30pm kickoff, but the champions' plight continued in a 2-1 loss to the Blues - their third on the spin in all competitions - meaning that Arsenal entered the international break at the summit of the standings.

Is the Premier League title already Arsenal's to lose?

Watts refused to go as far as saying that the title is Arsenal's to lose when asked, though, adding: "Far too early to be saying that! Absolutely not. It is very much Arsenal's title to win, but it's not Arsenal's title to lose.

"There’s a long, long way to go. It's massively impressive for them to be sitting where they are given the starts they've had fixtures wise, injuries wise, bedding in a load of new players.

“To come through all that at this stage and be sitting top of the table I think deserves a huge amount of credit. They’re only one worldie free kick away from being unbeaten at this point as well. They’re very, very happy with how they've started and where they are during a period of acclimatisation.

“But it's definitely too early to say it's theirs to lose. There's still a lot of very good teams in this league. Liverpool are still a very good team, just had a difficult week, and it just shows how quickly the landscape can change.”

Arsenal return from the international break with a trip to London rivals Fulham on October 18, three days before a date with Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.

> Click here to listen to the full conversation on Saka and Arsenal's victory over West Ham