Arsenal taught ‘big lesson’ by Brighton, says boss Mikel Arteta
Arsenal Football Newsletter
Mikel Arteta will finally have his Arsenal players back at the club’s training ground this week.
It has been a long three weeks for Arteta, stewing on that heavy defeat to Brighton as he watched his team fly off around the world.
For Arsenal, the international break was a mixed one. There were some very welcome starting performances, but also a couple of damaging injury issues.
Here are Arsenal’s big winners and losers from the past three weeks…
Winners
Viktor Gyokeres
It was really a perfect international break for Viktor Gyokeres.
He scored in all four of Sweden’s matches, restoring his confidence, and should now get his chance to carry that form into an Arsenal shirt after Kai Havertz’s injury.
Viktor Gyokeres proved a point for Sweden during the international break
Jurrien Timber
There would have been some nervous Arsenal fans seeing Timber report for Netherlands duty, considering his battle with injury over the past six months.
However, the Dutch medical staff were in regular contact with Arsenal and Timber’s training was carefully managed. He now has another start under his belt and should return to Arsenal with his fitness improved.
Martin Odegaard
There was a real scare for Martin Odegaard when he limped out of the stadium after Norway’s defeat to Portugal with an ankle problem.
However, he recovered from that quickly and played the full 90 minutes in all four matches. With four assists across those games, Odegaard provided more evidence that he is back to something close to his best this season.
Martin Odegaard continued his fine start to the season during the international break
Declan Rice
Rice has enough credit in the bank with England that withdrawing from this squad due to workload management will not impact his position in Thomas Tuchel’s side.
He was instead able to get some much-needed rest, including a trip to Dubai, and should be refreshed for the next stage of the campaign.
Losers
Kai Havertz
Jurgen Klopp’s plan to split his squad and only play Havertz in Germany’s first two matches seemed ideal for the striker.
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However, he suffered a hamstring injury in the first match in a frustrating blow after his strong start to the season.
Christos Tzolis
Tzolis scored in Greece’s first match of the break but then limped off against the Netherlands with a hamstring issue.
The left wing shirt had been his for Arsenal but now Eberechi Eze will have the chance to make it his own.
Injury scare: Christos Tzolis
Max Dowman
It felt like more a same from the 16-year-old when he scored the winner for England’s Under-19s against the Republic of Ireland.
Instead, Dowman was then shown a straight red card for a reckless challenge against the USA, before withdrawing from the squad with an injury issue.