At a Glance:
The World Cup kicks off in less than two weeks.
Arsenal lost the Champions League final on Saturday evening.
The Gunners’ four England stars will get additional rest before joining Thomas Tuchel’s squad ahead of the tournament.
Four Arsenal players are set for extra time off before joining England’s World Cup camp after Mikel Arteta’s side’s Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain.
Sky Sports report that Thomas Tuchel has decided the four Gunners players involved in Saturday’s Champions League final will not link up with the England squad for several more days.
Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze are expected to miss England’s friendly against New Zealand in Tampa on Saturday, but Sky says they should be back with the group in time for the final warm-up match against Costa Rica four days later in Orlando.
The update comes after Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with PSG in Budapest, with PSG winning the Champions League final 4-3 on penalties after extra time.
Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice get important rest before World Cup
For Arsenal, this is a sensible bit of player management at the end of a draining campaign.
Saka and Rice remain two of Mikel Arteta’s most important players, while Madueke and Eze both had roles in the final and are part of England’s World Cup plans. After a 63-game Arsenal season, a Champions League final, a title parade and then an immediate international camp, the risk was always that the turnaround could become too sharp.
This does not remove the World Cup workload issue, but it does at least suggest England are not rushing Arsenal’s players straight back into full training and friendly minutes before they have had a chance to recover properly.
Worth the wait. pic.twitter.com/QfETpbCjDI
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) May 31, 2026
The wider context for Arsenal
Arsenal’s season ended in an emotionally mixed fashion: a Premier League title, a north London parade and then the frustration of falling just short in Europe.
Rice and Saka started for Arsenal against PSG, with Madueke replacing Saka after 83 minutes and Eze coming on in extra time.
That matters because this is not simply about giving players a few days away from the England group. It is about recovery after a physically and mentally heavy finish to the club season, especially with a World Cup now waiting in North America.
England’s wider squad will begin preparations in Florida, but Sky say the Arsenal quartet will arrive later in the week.
The immediate expectation is that Saka, Rice, Madueke and Eze miss the New Zealand friendly, then return to the fold before Costa Rica. Arsenal supporters will still watch carefully for any sign of fatigue or reduced sharpness, but the current update reads more like planned rest than an injury concern.