Arsenal's 3 biggest winners and 3 sorest losers from the blockbuster international break

Let us never take the Premier League for granted again.

Three full weeks on from THAT mauling at Brighton (those 21 days were still not long enough to wipe it from memory), Arsenal will return to the domestic scene on Saturday when they host Leeds United at Emirates Stadium.

The blockbuster international break gave some a chance to flaunt their skills and give Mikel Arteta a headache ahead of the lunchtime kick-off. Others picked up injuries which will make them and Arteta alike wish they could turn the clock back to the Amex.

3 big winners and 3 sore losers for Arsenal from the blockbuster international break

Bearing all that in mind, here are Arsenal’s three biggest winners and three of their sorest losers from an extended international hiatus.

Winner #1: Viktor Gyokeres

Where did this guy come from?

Viktor Gyokeres struggles to get a kick of the ball at Arsenal but he was a goal machine for Sweden in the Nations League, netting in each of their four games during the break to push his record of scoring in consecutive Nations League games to seven matches.

Maybe it should not surprise fans as his ridiculous form for Sporting CP (97 goals in 102 games) was well known before his Gunners move, while 25 goals in 41 appearances prove his clinical touch in the national setup.

But it IS a surprise, and a most welcome one too! He has reminded everyone of just how good he can be in front of goal and how he should be a shoo-in to lead the line for Arsenal as Kai Havertz recovers from injury.

Arteta has found it hard to build a team around him but he knows now what Gyokeres can do if he is played to his strengths. If he unearths a winning formula, then the Swede has all the confidence that he needs to make it work.

Winner #2: Eberechi Eze

Failing to buy a winger had helped Eberechi Eze already. Injuries during the international break will only further aid his ascent to the first team.

Matchday is fast approaching and, right now, Eze is the sole left wing option available as Christos Tzolis got injured when playing for Greece against the Netherlands, with some reports indicating he will miss a few weeks of action.

It could be a lifeline for Eze as he had been down the pecking order and is yet to start a league game this season. Three of his sub appearances have amounted to 40 minutes combined while he also got 45 after Tzolis was hauled off early at Villa Park.

If that was in the name of ‘careful management’, then Eze should be primed for impact on Saturday as well as in the weeks to come.

He has failed to sparkle so far but everyone knows the talent is there. It is about time he came good on that sizeable investment.

Winner #3: Jurrien Timber

How good is it to see Jurrien Timber playing regular football again, six months after he was first ruled out by a groin strain?

He had featured in the two leagues games prior to the break and was involved for the Netherlands in a limited capacity, earning 10 and 78 minutes against Serbia and Greece respectively while being an unused sub in another match.

International breaks can disrupt rhythm but it has had the opposite effect for Timber and the chance to get back up to speed is welcome for Arsenal as Ezri Konsa – already replacing long-term absentee William Saliba – had to withdraw from the England squad through injury.

Ben White, meanwhile, is also recovering from a knock and is generally never too far from an injury layoff.

So, the path is clear for Timber to make the RB or RCB role his own once more. No better man to do it.

Loser #1: Mikel Merino

What an incredible, unlikely striker head-to-head Arsenal have on their hands!

Havertz’s injury left the striking role vacant and it had seemed like it was there for Mikel Merino to claim. He has impressed there before at club level, while his goal-scoring form for Spain of late made him increasingly hard to ignore.

Merino also netted three for the World Champions across their last two Nations League games – off the bench both times, of course.

However, the sensational form of Gyokeres (as well as the fact that he actually is a striker) means the boss surely cannot ignore him at the weekend, and Merino will have to wait for a cameo impact from the bench.

Again, no better man.

So, it will be record-breaking Gyokeres and the inevitable Merino; how on earth are opponents going to stop that duo?

Loser #2: Christos Tzolis

Injury struck at the worst possible time.

In his short Arsenal career to date, Christos Tzolis has combined a few good home appearances and an excellent pre-season with some anonymous away efforts, leaving fans unsure of what to make of him.

He needs to come them onside and the upcoming schedule – two home ties against Leeds and Lille – looked favourable to help him do that. But then the Arsenal injury curse took hold and he is set for a few weeks on the sidelines.

Perhaps the LW berth will be there when he returns – it is not like the Gunners have competition in that position for him bar Eze (who has not impressed whenever used there). Yet, still, it disrupts his integration at a time when the jury is still out on him and it will only make it harder for him to prove his doubters wrong.

Hopefully he comes back stronger.

Loser #3: Mikel Arteta

Arteta will not have enjoyed the break.

To start, one would imagine that a three-week break was far from ideal anyway, especially as it came hot on the heels of an awful 3-0 loss at Brighton. 21 days is a long time for anyone to be left stewing on that result.

Then, he watched on helplessly as Havertz, Tzolis and Konsa all withdrew from international duty due to injury, with Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard playing a lot of minutes and the latter suffering his own injury scare versus Portugal.

Oh, also, Gabriel and Bruno Guimaraes flew halfway around the world to play meaningless friendlies for Brazil.

Now, the boss needs to prepare for a must-win game against Leeds with jaded stars and the odd key player ruled out. You would like to think that if any manager and any squad can navigate those issues then it should be Arteta and Arsenal.

That is why he is paid the big bucks.

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