Given Arsenal are on a nine-game winning streak, Unai Emery would be forgiven for lamenting the loss of his players to another Interlull, however, he insists it’s an opportunity for him to fully focus on the club’s next game against Leicester in two weeks time.
Although nine first team stars have been called up by their respective countries for a double round of fixtures, the Spaniard will still have a significant number of his squad to work with once they’re back from a couple of days rest.
“Every international break is important also for international team and for the players because they want to stay with their national team and defend the team,” said Emery after Sunday’s 5-1 win at Fulham.
“For us it’s also about continuing our work but with (more calmness) because we have two weeks, but my idea and focus is Leicester.
“Two weeks is more time to prepare for this match and rest some week like this week Saturday and Sunday, but for us it’s time for continuing our work everyday with [calmness].”
He added: “No [I’m not worried about the players going away], because I think our players have the habits to play a lot of matches in the week and we want it.
“We arrived very late [back from Azerbaijan] but Friday we had off to rest the players and Saturday in the morning the first competition for us is speaking about the match today and we worked 24 hours very concentrated to win against Fulham in this match.
“For us and the players in the international break they are going to play Wednesday, Thursday and travel. Lucas I think is travelling to Asia, so it’s a very long travel, but the players are at a high level and can play like that.”
By our estimations, 16 first teamers will still be kicking about at London Colney meaning training sessions should, with the help of a few Academy kids, be relatively normal.
Given there’s another Interlull in November, these regular breaks for some of our key squad members could well prove to be very useful as the season goes on and it in part explains why the coach hasn’t gone for a full rotation policy in the cup competitions so far.
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First team players on Interlull duty in October
Danny Welbeck
Croatia vs England, October 12 (UEFA Nations League)
England vs Spain, October 15 (UEFA Nations League)
Aaron Ramsey – (depending on arrival of latest Ramsey Jr)
Wales vs Spain, October 11 (Friendly)
Republic of Ireland vs Wales, October 16 (UEFA Nations League)
Sokratis
Greece vs Hungary, October 12 (UEFA Nations League)
Finland vs Greece, October 15 (UEFA Nations League)
Granit Xhaka
Belgium vs Switzerland, October 12 (UEFA Nations League)
Iceland vs Switzerland, October 15 (UEFA Nations League)
Henrikh Mkhitaryan
Armenia vs Gibraltar, October 13 (UEFA Nations League)
Armenia vs Macedonia, October 16 (UEFA Nations League)
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Gabon vs South Sudan, October 12 (African Cup of Nations qualifier)
South Sudan vs Gabon, October 16 (African Cup of Nations qualifier)
Alex Iwobi
Nigeria vs Libya, October 12 (African Cup of Nations qualifier)
Libya vs Nigeria, October 15 (African Cup of Nations qualifier)
Mohamed Elneny
Egypt vs Swaziland, October 12 (African Cup of Nations qualifier)
Swaziland vs Egypt, October 16 (African Cup of Nations qualifier)
Lucas Torreira
South Korea vs Uruguay, October 12 (friendly)
Japan vs Uruguay, October 16 (friendly)
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Players not involved with their countries
Petr Cech
Bernd Leno
Emi Martinez
Hector Bellerin
Laurent Koscielny (injured)
Stephan Lichtsteiner
Rob Holding
Nacho Monreal
Shkodran Mustafi
Carl Jenkinson
Konstantinos Mavropanos (injured)
Sead Kolasinac
Mesut Ozil
Ainsley Maitland-Niles (injured)
Matteo Guendouzi
Alex Lacazette
Update
Eddie Nketiah and Joe Willock have been named in England’s under-20 squad for games against Italy and the Czech Republic and Emile Smith Rowe has been called up by England under-19s. Reiss Nelson, who scored his second goal for Hoffenheim at the weekend, earns his first chance at under-21 level.
Emeryball …………goal three yesterday.
The love is back.
I totally agree.
Only point is, that epitomizes what Wenger was about and his philosophy, playing exhilarating, at times at the cost of the results.
So in honour of that man, more than naming a stand or installing a statue, it maybe appropriate to still call it the Wengerball?
(Almost) In the same note, the biggest change that Emery seems to have managed is winning even when not playing well. I’m not sure if we would won all those 9 games last year. Long may it continue.
The playing out the back is a definite Emery feature though. It was like a perfect moment where Wenger’s philosophy and Emery’s met in the middle and produced something truly outstanding.
Bingo
Only a matter of time before Lacazette is called up for france again.
i think the way lacazette plays holding up the ball for someone and bringing others in just like giroud there is way more to his game than just that. he defends from the front and is lethal in front of the goal. therr is a good chance lacazzette will replace giroud. and if it happens it would be ironic .
Surprised Lacazette has not been called up. His form recently is amazing
Yes, Laca really deserves to be playing for his national side. But I guess it’s Giroud is more suited to that team, as Griezman and Mbape play off him, whereas Laca is more like those two. But a front three of Laca, Griezman and Mbape sounds fucking formidable and surely Deschamps will be tempted to chuck his current working formation to try this one out.
As much as I like Giroud, he hasn’t exactly hit it off with Chelsea this season yet he is in the France squad over Lacazette. I find this a bit strange as Lacazette can hold up the ball as well as Giroud but is also more of a prolific goal scorer than him at the moment.
Giroud is one of the leaders in assists currently in the PL though, with 4. His services are very much important to Chelsea, if only to free up someone like Hazard even more, and his role is similar in the French team. When you have guys like Hazard and Mbappe in your team, you just need the other players to play to their strengths, and Giroud does it to a tee.
Lots of good players getting a rest. Will be better for us than the other top teams.
Dont be ridiculous…. Ozil won’t be at London Colony, he’s on another holiday from his holiday, after getting a paper cut on his left pinky returning from Azerbaijan last Friday morning.
Hopefully we’ve seen the last of him in an Arsenal shirt, put him on the market for £5mill in January and move on,
So what’s your honest opinion of Oezil then?
I think he’s a remarkable talent, but his overall output doesn’t warrant him being given a free role. If you then ask him to do things that nullify his good attributes? That then highlight his weak attributes? It means the team suffers as a collective whether you play him as a free roaming no10? Or ask him to do a job on the right? Did we really pay him £300k p/w “So he could do a job on the right?” He hasn’t put in a decent performance since the ink dried on his new deal last January, he’s won his… Read more »
I think Özil is brilliant. His body language is of course deeply original. Even when he plays well, he looks like he internalizes the laments of humanity.
it might be a good time to sell him…i hear Madrid are interested.
The city of Madrid? Seems like he could be good at accounting, but who really knows.
Btw Rich, Mesut Özil is a German national.
It’s ironic that casual racists like you also cannot analyse football. Weak attributes affecting your overall output eh?
WTF are you on about? How is my opinion that we’re better off getting shot of a player who IMO doesn’t warrant a starting spot? and I think we’re better off selling? Somehow make me a racist?
Ozil is white, I’m white, this would make me racist against my own race?
Surely if I’m hating on Ozil for being German? I’d be xenophobic? Not racist….
Where the hell have you managed to drag up racist mixed up with xenophobia from anything I’ve said?
Maybe I should have clarified what I meant. Your analysis of Ozil’s performances was junk, but how are you still focusing on how he looks in 2018? Ozil won the World Cup with that same hangdog expression on his face. Get over it. “Ozil’s white, I’m white”…. as if white people can’t be xenophobic against people of Turkish ethnicity (racism and xenophobia overlap, it’s not one or the other). And no we’re not ‘shipping him off’ to Turkey or anywhere else. Leave that rhetoric to the German racists who’ve been on his case since the World Cup (if you meant… Read more »
Ww still need him no matter what
what you talking about, we need him no matter what, what an utter silly comment to make
best idea I,ve heard in a long time
He has a lot of the defence to work with which is excellent.
Of that bunch on international duty, my only worry is Torreira.
a. There is no replacement for him in our team.
b. The way he works, he could be used for 180 minutes by Uruguay.
Other than that, COYG. Show them what we got!
More than the third goal, which yes we could have scored at any time in Wenger’s era, the good sign for me is that Emery is busting all the late Wenger myths. It seemed like typical Arsenal before the season started, that we were getting very hopeful that teams like man city and spurs would have no players ready to start the season because they were all tired from the world cup. Come day one, most of their players were fit and raring to go. Then theres a slight feeling of “oh thats unfair we’ve been slightly tricked!” We used… Read more »
Re World Cup players we won’t know what condition they will be in come the new year .
Harry Kane looked shattered at the World Cup
Wenger was quite the worrier, wasn’t he? Could that have rubbed off on his team by showing lack of confidence?
Agreed. Emery just comes across as more results oriented. (Nine in a row is starting to look convincing.) We are not seeing excellence yet, but have the real feeling that is what is being instilled day by day.
One of the best comments I read in a long time.
Cheers!
lets judge when the pressure is on, and expectations are high, and its a crunch game.
The team played in a pressure cooker for the past few seasons. It wasnt good for anyone. Its unfair to compare the last two years to the current mild honeymoon.
Really great observations Dan.
Emery’s relentless focus and positivity has been just what we needed. Interlull? No problem. Ozil’s numbers down from last season? The squad steps up. No Giroud? Repurpose Welbeck as a battering ram CF with aerial threat away from home.
We could go top after the next matchday if results go our way. Love it.
Well-said Dan. It’s a no-excuses philosophy, but a supportive attitude with it. Emery is born to coach.
We wiat for ages for a top class striker and now two come at same time. Was thinking during game yesterday when Laca was banging them in, if only Aub could pick off from where he was last season. He then comes on and bang bang. Oh OK he’s in form too. The squad seems to have some quality depth to it now but as someone also said, Torreira is a concern if something happens. Knew he’d be top quality.
Thanks for doing a list of who is/isn’t on international duty – useful to see.
Emery’s difference with Wenger is he pays attention to details and is not afraid to tweak the players from the sideline. BUT he is also using his assets very well. His intervention from the bench is top notch. Ramsey in with Auba and instantly we have an effect. To be fair to Wenger, he has always bought well but he left too much open to interpretation. Emery has limits to this squad which is still unbalanced with our right still needing a faster asset but he is really using the length and breath of his squad very well. As I… Read more »
Aubameyang is actually going to play South Sudan in their capital Juba. Here is what the British gouvernement’s travel advice: “The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise against all travel to South Sudan. If you are in South Sudan, you should leave if it’s safe to do so.” Likewise, Iwobi’s Nigeria shal play Libya in Tripoli. For this popular destination, the FCO says: “The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise against all travel to Libya, and for British nationals still in Libya to leave immediately by commercial means.” Beer prices too high, cockroaches in the shower, gun fire. (Interesting by… Read more »
Again, loving Emery’s attitude towards these kinds of things.
(depending on arrival of latest Ramsey Jr)
Rather Ramsey JuniorS, as he expect twins 🙂