As Arsenal approach the final international break of the season they find themselves in good shape. Mikel Arteta's men are just one point off the top of the Premier League and have all but qualified from the Champions League group stage for the first time in seven years. This is all despite the absence of some significant players across the course of the season.

Arsenal's injury problems have seen Mikel Arteta call up a number of of young stars like Bradley Ibrahim, Charles Sagoe Jr. and Reuell Walters to first team training. This will likely continue over the international break to supplement the numbers in the senior squad although the Gunners themselves have plenty of academy stars away on international duty like Ethan Nwaneri, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Lino Sousa.

For those staying at London Colney, there is likely to be a plenty of hard work on the training ground - although even Arteta admitted that he was going to be taking a bit of a break. "I am going to stay in London so I doubt the sunshine," the Spaniard responded when asked if he would be jetting off for any winter sun. "But I'm sure I will have some really beautiful family time and with friends and enjoy some days off for sure."

Among those staying behind will be Ben White. The 25-year-old has not been called up to an England squad since leaving the World Cup in Qatar early and that seems unlikely to change while Gareth Southgate is still in charge. It's not clear how much work White will actually be doing out on the pitch though, as he continues to recover from an injury that saw him miss Saturday's 3-1 win over Burnley.

"Yesterday in training he wasn't comfortable," Arteta said after the game. "He didn't look right. But Ben won't give you much. He always wants to be on the pitch and he wants to hide anything that is in there. But we highlighted something happening there that we noticed in the last two weeks as well. We wanted to protect him today. It was the right call from the physios and the medical department and tomorrow we will assess him and understand what's happening."

Martin Odegaard is another who missed that match due to injury. The 24-year-old had been struggling with a hip problem before sustaining a concussion in training after in the build up to the 1-0 defeat against Newcastle. As a result he has not be joined up with the Norwegian national team as he continues to recover. He is being put through his paces and assessed at London Colney and there is a hope that a rare rest for Odegaard should help clear up his his hip issue.

Eddie Nketiah is another one who may benefit from a bit of time off. The 24-year-old has been struggling with an ankle injury and missed out on the most recent England squad. He will be joined by fellow Hale Ender Reiss Nelson, while Cedric Soares will also be training at London Colney with the first team.

It's perhaps a sign of how far Arsenal have come in recent seasons that so many of their first team players are set to be away this international break. It's only two-and-a-half-years ago that just four members of the squad went off for the Euro 2020.

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