The international break took full swing as Arsenal had a contingent of players representing their nations, as Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice started for England in their Nations League clash against Greece.
The game started on a very sad note, with the unfortunate news of George Baldock’s passing dominating the back pages, especially with the fact that he had very strong ties with both nations.
Despite calling up Ollie Watkins and Dominic Solanke, Lee Carsley chose to start the match without a striker, deploying Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden in the False 9 role. Benfica forward, Vangelis Pavlidis, was the undoubted star of the night, scoring a brace that sank the hearts of English fans in their own backyard.
How did Arsenal’s players fare in the game?
Bukayo Saka had a rather subdued performance and played for only 52 minutes before he was substituted for Noni Madueke. Sadly, he couldn’t continue the game and I’m hoping that this injury is not serious. Maybe it’s time to activate the Dark Arts and bring him back to London Colney, ensuring that he doesn’t play the second Nations League game against Finland this weekend.
Declan Rice played 90 minutes, put up another combative performance, earning a booking for his troubles.
England are currently behind Greece on the standings.