Arsenal have 19 players away on international duty this November, and eight of them could be on the pitch at the same time when Spain host England in Madrid on Sunday 15 November.
The squads start meeting up this week, with nobody having kicked a ball yet. Saturday’s 1-0 win over Hull City left Mikel Arteta’s side six points clear at the top, and the Premier League doesn’t return until 21 November.
Sixteen of the 19 are senior call-ups. The other three are youth internationals: Max Dowman with England’s under-21s, Cristhian Mosquera with Spain’s under-21s and Marli Salmon with England’s under-18s.
Which Arsenal players are on international duty?
Here is where every senior player is going, and when he plays.
| Player | Country | Fixtures |
|---|---|---|
| Declan Rice, Ben White, Ezri Konsa, Eberechi Eze, Myles Lewis-Skelly | England | Croatia (12 Nov), Spain (15 Nov) |
| David Raya, Martin Zubimendi, Mikel Merino | Spain | Czechia (12 Nov), England (15 Nov) |
| Riccardo Calafiori | Italy | France (12 Nov), Belgium (15 Nov) |
| Jurrien Timber | Netherlands | Greece (13 Nov), Germany (16 Nov) |
| Kai Havertz | Germany | Serbia (13 Nov), Netherlands (16 Nov) |
| Christos Tzolis | Greece | Netherlands (13 Nov), Serbia (16 Nov) |
| Martin Odegaard | Norway | Wales (14 Nov), Denmark (17 Nov) |
| Viktor Gyökeres | Sweden | Bosnia and Herzegovina (14 Nov), Poland (17 Nov) |
| Gabriel Magalhaes, Bruno Guimarães | Brazil | Japan (14 Nov), Singapore (17 Nov), both friendlies |
The two notable absentees stay in north London. Bukayo Saka is still working back from the quad injury he picked up against Bayern Munich, and William Saliba was left out of Zinedine Zidane’s France squad so Arsenal can manage his comeback themselves.
England’s Arsenal five
Thomas Tuchel picked five Gunners for the last two Nations League group games of 2026: Rice, White, Konsa, Eze and Lewis-Skelly. Croatia visit Wembley on Thursday 12 November at 7.45pm, and England then travel to Madrid to face group leaders Spain on Sunday 15 November, also at 7.45pm UK time.
White is the one with a story. He is back in the England squad for the first time since March, after injury late last season cost him his place at the World Cup.
Konsa, the summer signing who has helped cover for Saliba so well, goes as an Arsenal player for the first time. Noni Madueke again misses out despite his form on the right while Saka has been out.
Is Declan Rice fit for England?
Yes. Rice was taken off for Mikel Merino on 63 minutes against Hull, which caused a flicker of worry at the Emirates, but Arteta said afterwards that he was fine. He is expected to join up with England as planned.
Arteta has already brushed off the questions about Rice’s workload, pointing out that he was the only player left out of the squad for both Carabao Cup games and given two days at home.
Spain vs England: eight Gunners in Madrid
Luis de la Fuente has picked Raya, Zubimendi and Merino for Spain’s games against Czechia on 12 November and England three days later. Put them alongside the five England players and that Madrid game could have eight Arsenal players in it, all trying to finish the window without a knock.
For Zubimendi and Merino it is also a chance to remind people what they can do. Both have had limited minutes at club level and both have been linked with moves away, so a good showing for Spain does them no harm at all.
Havertz vs Timber in Berlin
The other Arsenal head-to-head comes a day later. Jürgen Klopp’s Germany play Serbia away on 13 November before hosting Xavi’s Netherlands in Berlin on 16 November, which puts Havertz up against Timber.
Timber has a busy week either way. The Netherlands play Greece on 13 November, so he could come up against Tzolis before he faces Havertz. Calafiori’s Italy, meanwhile, take on France on 12 November and Belgium on 15 November, with a quarter-final place at stake.
The long trips: Brazil, Norway and Sweden
Gabriel and Bruno Guimarães have the furthest to go. Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil are playing both of their November friendlies in Singapore, against Japan at the National Stadium on 14 November and against Singapore three days later.
The pair are already there. Both arrived in Singapore on Sunday, Brazil’s first session was set for Monday, and the full squad is due together by Tuesday.
Odegaard and Gyökeres also finish on 17 November. Norway host Wales in Oslo on 14 November before going to Denmark, and Graham Potter’s Sweden face Bosnia and Herzegovina and then Poland.
What it means for Newcastle away
Arsenal’s first game back is at Newcastle on Saturday 21 November, with a 5.30pm kick-off at St James’ Park.
The England and Spain group finish on 15 November and get almost a week before that trip. Havertz, Timber and Tzolis are done on 16 November. The four who play on 17 November, Gabriel, Bruno Guimarães, Odegaard and Gyökeres, get the shortest turnaround, and two of them are flying back from south-east Asia.
Our view: the Singapore pair are the real worry
Arteta can’t control the minutes, only the recovery. The Spain vs England game will get the headlines because of how many Gunners could be involved, but those players at least come back with nearly a week to spare.
The bigger risk is Gabriel and Bruno Guimarães. Two friendlies on the other side of the world, a long flight home and four days before a trip to St James’ Park is not ideal for the centre-back and the midfielder who has been running games lately. If Arteta had a say, both would play one game each, not two.
The flip side is Saka and Saliba. Two weeks on the training ground without a match could be exactly what both of them need before the run of games that follows Newcastle.
