The 12 Arsenal players still left with games to play on international duty ahead of early Nottingham Forest clash

Arsenal return to Premier League action on Saturday lunchtime against Nottingham Forest

Arsenal will look to bounce back from their 1-0 loss to Premier League title rivals Liverpool when they return to action against Nottingham Forest on Saturday afternoon.

England's midfielder Declan Rice (R) celebrates scoring the team's second goal during the 2026 World Cup Group K qualifier football match between England and Andorra, at Villa Park, in Birmingham, on September 6, 2025. placeholder image
England's midfielder Declan Rice (R) celebrates scoring the team's second goal during the 2026 World Cup Group K qualifier football match between England and Andorra, at Villa Park, in Birmingham, on September 6, 2025. | AFP via Getty Images

The Gunners have been handed the early kick off as the top-flight action gets back underway, as their clash with Forest at the Emirates Stadium gets underway at 12.30pm.

The early nature of the game may prove to be a frustrating one for manager Mikel Arteta - as he will have some players in action right up until the early hours of Wednesday morning in South America.

New signing Piero Hincapié is poised to be in action for Ecuador against Argentina at midnight on Wednesday while Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Magalhães are part of the Brazil squad for their World Cup qualifier against Bolivia at 12.30am on Wednesday morning.

The games that Arsenal players have left to play in this international break

A total of 12 Arsenal players still have international games they could be involved in from Monday until the early hours of Wednesday. Ethan Nwaneri was in action for England Under-21s against Kazakhstan. That game has since finished but the match was played in Aktobe, which is located in the north west of the country.

It is a long trip back for Nwaneri but the city is not as far east as the nation’s capital of Astana.

Riccardo Calafiori will be part of the Italy side as they play Israel while Viktor Gyokeres is with Sweden as they take on Kosovo. On Tuesday, Cristhian Mosquera and Martin Odegaard are in action for Spain Under-21s and Norway, respectively.

Myles Lewis-Skelly, Declan Rice, Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke have made the journey to Serbia ahead of England’s game in Serbia. The final games involving Arsenal players will be in South America.

The Arsenal players who have wrapped up international commitments

On Sunday night, five Arsenal players completed their stint of games for their respective nations and are now free to return to North London to prepare for Saturday’s game with Nottingham Forest.

Jurrien Timber came off the bench as the Netherlands won 3-2 in Lithuania. Leandro Trossard started for Belgium as they won 6-0 at home to Kazakhstan. He did not have a direct involvement in any of the goals and was subbed on 63 minutes.

David Raya was left on the bench as Spain hammered Turkey 6-0. However, Martin Zubimendi got the nod ahead of Rodri in defensive midfield while Mikel Merino bagged an impressive hat-trick as he led the Spanish charge in their demolition win.

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