Mikel Arteta won’t have been pleased to lose a few players to injury during the international break.
Kai Havertz picked up a hamstring issue for Germany, though that is thought to not be a serious one. Christos Tzolis, however, is expected to be out for around four weeks after his hamstring injury on Greece duty.
At the back, Ezri Konsa left the England camp with a knock picked up in the Croatia game, leaving his availability for the Leeds clash up in the air.
However, there is one player who may well come back from the break fresher than he has been in a long time — at least according to Paul Merson.
Paul Merson reckons Declan Rice will come back better and recharged after the break
Speaking on Sky Sports, the ‘Magic Man’ made the case that Declan Rice’s withdrawal from the England squad for load management reasons was absolutely necessary, and could even give Arsenal a boost heading into the next phase of the season.
“Declan Rice actually did get a rest, didn’t he? How much will he have benefited from having this time off? If anybody needed some rest, it’s Declan Rice — he’s played a lot of football,” Merson said.
“He always turns up, he’s always playing, injured or not. He probably played 60-odd games last season, something like that, and 30 of them he probably wasn’t 100% fit.
“So yeah, it would have been nice for him to have a break. I think it was just a bonus for Arsenal that he’s had a rest. But luckily enough it worked for England as well.”
Rice has played 76 times for club and country since the start of last season, managing neural hamstring pain throughout the World Cup and having a rest despite his physical condition. Three full weeks of proper rest could make a huge difference.
Mikel Arteta no longer needs to force Declan Rice back
Of course, Mikel Arteta has signed a new contract extension until 2030 with Arsenal, which signals top-down stability at the club. Declan Rice himself is close to signing a new contract too.
Arteta has built Arsenal’s midfield depth around Rice but he no longer needs to be so heavily reliant on the £105million man. Myles Lewis-Skelly is in scintillating form and continued that with England during the international break. Bruno Guimaraes is a world-class level alternative too and now Martin Zubimendi is knocking on the door following his impressive cameos for both club and country. Mikel Merino provides yet another option. The quality is there to protect Rice when needed, and use him at his best when he is available.
As Merson points out, a recharged Declan Rice, properly rested for the first time in over a year, would be a significant boost for the Gunners, who are convinced he still has another level to reach. Tomorrow against Leeds, we may get the first glimpse of what that looks like.