Several Arsenal players are currently away at Euro 2024 and the Copa America with their National teams, but the rest are preparing for pre-season.
Mikel Arteta’s side do not have to worry about next season for a while, and those not away at International tournaments were on holiday in the past few weeks.
However, a few players have now taken an unusual step to help them prepare for Arsenal’s upcoming campaign, in which they are expected to challenge Manchester City for the Premier League title again.
With pre-season not set to begin until the latter stages of July, some Arsenal stars have already begun preparations, as they have now joined Arteta for some light training in Spain.
Arsenal stars join Mikel Arteta for extra training in Spain
CBS Sports have now reported that defenders Ben White and Jurrien Timber, as well as midfielders Emile Smith Rowe, Reiss Nelson, Fabio Vieira, and striker Eddie Nketiah, are all in Marbella doing extra fitness work with Arteta.
Captain Martin Odegaard is set to join this selection of players, who are undergoing light training with their manager in Spain, despite not being required to return from their holidays yet.
This does highlight the positive environment Arteta has helped build at Arsenal, with players ready to go the extra mile for their team, and those at tournaments have also kept in touch with each other, as revealed by goalkeeper David Raya.
Arsenal stars working hard to fight for their futures
The trio of Nelson, Nketiah and Smith Rowe could all leave this summer, but it is clear that they are ready to fight for their Arsenal futures by building up their fitness before pre-season begins.
Smith Rowe in particular, may wish to prove he can still be a valuable asset for Arteta after hardly featuring for the last two seasons.
Vieira and Timber will be aiming to recover strongly from injury-plagued campaigns, to get off to the best possible start next season, and a full pre-season will be beneficial for both.
White and Odegaard are starters with their futures secured, but with White not included in the England squad after a fallout with Gareth Southgate, and Odegaard’s Norway side failing to qualify for the Euros, both are aiming to build upon fine individual campaigns.