Bukayo ‘Starboy’ Saka just wrote one of the best redemption stories soccer has seen these days by powering England’s win against Switzerland in the Euro’s quarter-final. Three years back, Saka’s devastating penalty miss triggered England’s loss against Italy in the shootout at the UEFA Euro Final. Today, Saka started the first chapter of his tale of redemption by sending a piledriver into Switzerland’s net from outside the box.

Then, he returned to the nightmarish penalty stage to confidently send home a clever penalty. The 22-year-old’s stellar heroics caught former San Diego Wave coach Casey Stoney’s attention and she has nothing but high praise for the Arsenal superstar.

Moments after Bukayo Saka equalized for England with his sublime strike, Casey Stoney took to X and wrote, “Yesssss Saka you beauty.” Stoney has indeed described the 22-year-old’s goal perfectly. It came from outside the box, off Saka’s strong left foot, and rolled its way into the right corner, leaving Swiss goalie Yan Sommer a chance in hell to save that shot. Meanwhile, Saka, commenting on his mammoth success, recalled the nightmarish 2020 Euro episode that had powered him to rise from the ashes.

Speaking to the press after redeeming England, Bukayo Saka said, “I had faith in God to come back from something like that. It was really difficult. I used that and took my chance. I’m happy,” referring to his shocking Euro 2020 penalty miss that triggered England’s loss against Italy in the final. Saka, alongside Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford, missed penalties for England that night and was subjected to severe racial abuse online. Hence, poetic justice would be an understatement to describe Saka’s iconic comeback at the big stage.

The Arsenal starlet also shared optimism on England’s back-to-back come-from-behind wins, hinting that the Three Lions have locked their eyes on the high prize.

Saka thinks England could go all the way at the UEFA Euros

Even now, England has failed to live up to the reputation of a squad that houses the Premier League’s best player, La Liga’s best player, and the Bundesliga’s top scorer. However, the Three Lions came clutch against Slovakia in the last 16 and repeated a comeback against Switzerland, proclaiming they still had the firepower. Bukayo Saka said that England’s determination to win the Euro silverware was at the heart of these comeback wins. “It shows how much we want to win the tournament. In the past two games we have gone down and come back,” said Saka.

After that, the Arsenal starlet sent a chilling warning to their semi-final opponents. “Hopefully we can win the next game in 90 minutes but whatever it takes,” the 22-year-old added. The winner of the Netherlands-Turkiye quarter-final will face England in the semi on July 10th. What are your thoughts on Saka’s sublime redemption arc? Tell us in the comments.