World Cup 2022 is almost a week old and day six provided a mini-Arsenal head-to-head battle.
football.london have been keeping tabs on how the tournament has started for the Gunners' stars and will continue to do so throughout their time in Qatar as manager Mikel Arteta will be hopeful his players return unscathed when the Premier League season resumes on Boxing Day.
Thursday afforded Arsenal supporters the dream scenario of seeing four representatives in action across three separate fixtures, but one game on Friday served up a case of friendships being put on hold for 90 minutes as important points were at stake with England facing the USA.
READ MORE: Arsenal loan stars to be affected by FA Cup rule as third round draw ball numbers are confirmed
It turned out to be a frustrating evening for the Three Lions and Bukayo Saka as he couldn't add to his two goals in the opening group game. On the other hand, Matt Turner looked assured in the USA net as he made a decent save from Mason Mount in the first-half, and claimed crosses with authority en route to keeping a clean sheet.
Ben White and Aaron Ramsdale were unused substitutes once again and the chances of either featuring in the final group game against Wales next week may have dipped as England know they need a result in order to reach the last-16 stage so Gareth Southgate could resist making wholesale changes.
Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli both reacted on social media after appearing as second half substitutes in Brazil's 2-0 win over Serbia. Now, with Neymar suffering an ankle injury, there could be a chance for one of the Arsenal attackers to benefit as the Paris Saint-Germain superstar is unavailable for the remainder of the group phase.
The Brazilian pair could face a familiar face in Granit Xhaka next week and the midfielder reflected on captaining Switzerland in their opener against Cameroon: "What an honour to captain my country at the World Cup," he wrote on Instagram. "Perfect Start - Lots for us to build on!"
Thomas Partey was the one Arsenal player to suffer defeat on Thursday as Ghana narrowly lost to Portugal so he spent Friday recovering after completing the full 90 minutes as he turns his attention to the meeting with South Korea on Monday afternoon.
William Saliba took part in France's training session ahead of their meeting with Denmark this evening, but there is a worry over Takehiro Tomiyasu. According to Yomiuri Online, the Arsenal defender and Hiroki Sakai are doubts for Japan's clash against Costa Rica at the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium.
This is in relation to concerns about the pair's fitness as following the shock 2-1 victory over Germany, Kyodo News confirmed via Japan's media officer that Sakai had suffered a left hamstring injury the night before the game while Tomiyasu was carrying a similar problem.
Have your say on the Gunners’ season so far by taking part in the Big Arsenal Forum!
READ NEXT:
Mykhaylo Mudryk sent Arsenal transfer message with Josko Gvardiol comparison amid £90m price tag
Arsenal recall second loan ace this week as injury announcement confirms long-term layoff
Liverpool and 3 teams more likely to complete Jude Bellingham transfer ahead of Arsenal
Arsenal summer signing can be a surprise contender for future captaincy role after £34m transfer
Arsenal's confirmed transfer can be great news for Mykhaylo Mudryk if he completes January move
