The headlines were dominated once again by Arsenal during the final international break of the season ahead of the World Cup this summer. Much was made of the withdrawal of a slew of Gunners from national team duty during the break, for better or for worse. Nobody should be complaining about a critical period of rest after 50 club matches played, but when it’s Arsenal, the outlets have to get their clicks.
However, a few Gunners featured for their countries over the break. Some took part in crucial
World Cup qualifying matches, while others got some useful minutes to keep match fitness and find some form.
Martin Ødegaard, Jurrien Timber, Eberechi Eze, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhães, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, and Leandro Trossard were either left out due to injury or withdrawn before playing.
Ben White – England
The defender finally returned to the England squad after a “controversial” 4 year hiatus following a highly-publicized falling out with members of the England coaching staff during the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
In his first match, he played both hero and villain after coming off the bench against Uruguay, scoring England’s only goal from a corner (naturally) before conceding a penalty in stoppage time in a 1-1 draw. He got the start for England’s second match, a 0-1 loss to Japan.
Noni Madueke – England
The pacy winger got the call up for England’s friendlies and was given the start at right wing against Uruguay. Unfortunately, he endured a collision in the first half that saw him subbed off before he was spotted walking with a leg brace after the match.
Riccardo Calafiori – Italy
With a chance to finally return to the World Cup for the first time since 2006, Calafiori played every available minute as part of a back 3 for Italy.
Their first match saw them defeat Northern Ireland 2-0 before playing an exhausting 120 minute nail-biter against Bosnia & Herzegovina, as Italy played for over an hour down a man. Unfortunately for the European powerhouse, they will miss out on their 4th straight World Cup after falling in penalties to the hosts.
Kai Havertz – Germany
Following his return to first team action for the Gunners, the attacker was called up by Germany for their two international friendlies.
Havertz got the start against Switzerland in a 4-3 victory, getting a little over an hour of match time before being subbed off. He also got a first half run-out before scoring a penalty in Germany’s 2-1 win over Ghana.
Cristhian Mosquera – Spain
The Spanish defender was rewarded for his impressive debut season with the Gunners with his first (of hopefully many) first team call-ups for their two friendlies.
In their opening match against Serbia, he came on for the final 10 minutes to see the 3-0 victory out. He was given the start against Egypt in a 0-0 draw, featuring for a full 90 and putting in a very solid performance.
David Raya – Spain
The Arsenal shot stopper was called up for Spain once again, this time finally getting some match time in the start against Egypt. It was, however, a shortened performance, after he was subbed off near the hour mark following a bit of a risky pass that nearly led to an Egypt goal.
Martin Zubimendi – Spain
Arsenal’s no. 6 joined up with his countrymen for the first of their two friendlies. He came off the bench for the last 20 minutes against Serbia before returning to England with discomfort.
Christian Nørgaard – Denmark
The Danish midfielder featured in both of Denmark’s World Cup playoff matches at centerback. He played 87 minutes in their opening match against North Macedonia, scoring the 4th goal from, you guessed it, a corner.
He came off the bench in their pivotal second match against Czechia, which saw the Danes miss out on a World Cup berth after losing in penalties.
Viktor Gyökeres – Sweden
Few Gunners had as successful an international break as the Swedish striker. Vying for their first World Cup appearance since 2002, Gyökeres scored a hat trick in their first playoff match against Ukraine before scoring the match winning goal at the death in a back-and-forth 3-2 match against Poland to punch their ticket to the World Cup.
Gabriel Martinelli – Brazil
The attacker joined up with Brazil for two friendlies, featuring in both while looking to make a case for a World Cup roster spot.
Against France, he got 62 minutes on the left wing before being substituted in their 1-2 loss. In the second match against Croatia, he came off the bench for the last 25 minutes and scored a stoppage time goal to help secure a 3-1 victory.
Piero Hincapie – Ecuador
The defender, on loan from Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen, took part in the first of two friendlies for Ecuador. He played for 72 minutes of their 1-1 draw with Morocco before pulling up with what appeared to be a hamstring injury, which saw him subbed off before being sent back to London early.
Ethan Nwaneri – England
The attacker, currently on loan to Ligue 1 side Marseille, had a great showing for the England U21 squad during their European under-21 Championship qualifying matches. He started against Andorra in a 1-1 draw before scoring twice against Moldova in a 4-1 romp.
Myles Lewis-Skelly – England
The midfielder-turned-defender joined back up with fellow Hale End grad Ethan Nwaneri to help England in their qualifying quest. Like Nwaneri, his international break was quite good. He played a full 90 against Andora ahead of the Moldova victory, where he assisted Ethan Nwaneri for both of his goals.
Max Dowman – England
Arsenal’s latest young superstar featured for the England U19 team in their European under-19 Championship qualifiers, as the young Three Lions failed to advance to the next round after finishing second in their group. He scored against Portugal in England’s 6-0 win to continue his fine form.
