The wait is almost over for the return of Premier League football after the first international break of the 2025/26 season left Gunners hungry for action just three games into the season.
We host Nottingham Forest on Saturday, looking to get our third win of the campaign - but how do we usually get on after an international hiatus?
As the players return to training from their respective nations, we've delved into the record books to see how we've got on in recent seasons.
Home comforts
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In many seasons, there are usually four international breaks: September, October, November and March/April. Last season, we won three of four matches immediately preceding one of these breaks, defeating new Forest boss Ange Postecoglou's Tottenham Hotspur in September, Forest themselves in November and Fulham in April.
Our 3-0 win over Forest in November 2024 was our first home contest after an international break since we defeated Leeds United 4-1 in April 2023, a run of six successive matches on the road.
However our home form has been strong in recent seasons when playing at Emirates Stadium after the break. We've won six of our last seven home ties, scoring 18 goals in the process with big wins over Tottenham, West Ham United and our next opponents. Indeed, since Mikel Arteta's arrival in December 2019, we have only lost once following an international break, which was the first such occasion against Liverpool in April 2021:
Home games after international break under Arteta
Date
Fixture
Apr 2021
Arsenal 0-3 Liverpool
Sep 2021
Arsenal 1-0 Norwich
Oct 2021
Arsenal 2-2 Crystal Palace
Oct 2022
Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham
Dec 2022
Arsenal 3-1 West Ham United
Apr 2023
Arsenal 4-1 Leeds United
Nov 2024
Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest
Apr 2025
Arsenal 2-1 Fulham
leading the way
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Our impressive home run goes back further than Mikel's reign. When looking at games immediately after a pause for international action, we have lost just once in our last 20, a run that goes back to November 2014.
In those matches, we've won 16, drawn three and lost just once. That puts us top of the pile in terms of points taken and points per game from those sides that have been in the Premier League longer than two seasons:
Home games after international break since 2015/16
Team
P
W
D
L
Pts
PPG
Arsenal
19
15
3
1
48
2.53
Man City
19
14
3
2
45
2.37
Liverpool
17
12
4
1
40
2.35
Tottenham
18
12
3
3
39
2.17
Man Utd
18
11
5
2
38
2.11
Aston Villa
14
8
2
4
26
1.86
Chelsea
17
8
4
5
28
1.65
Since the start of the 2022/23 season, we've lost just once following the international break, which came last season in a 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth in October 2024.
In that time, we've won eight matches, including two victories over Tottenham and drawing away at Chelsea and Manchester City. Since 2015/16, our longest run of wins after international breaks is six, coming between November 2017 and April 2019 - beating Tottenham, Stoke City, Leicester City, Bournemouth and Newcastle United on two occasions.
Who do we face this season?
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Our game against Forest this weekend kicks off a four-game block of Premier League matches, where we'll also face Manchester City and West Ham United at home, as well as a trip to Newcastle.
Following the October break, we will take on Fulham at Craven Cottage on October 18, while our first game after the November international break will once again be against Tottenham on November 22. This will be the third time we've played our north London rivals after an international break under Arteta.
The last Premier League matchup after a break is scheduled for April 11, when we host Bournemouth at Emirates Stadium.
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