Arsenal players have been given a few days off before they begin training in Dubai on Thursday as the squad looks to recover and bounce back for the second half of the season.
Some players have already flown to Dubai and decided to take their holiday there before training kicks off.
Arsenal will be in Dubai until next Wednesday, training and taking part in some team-bonding sessions. There will also be some sponsorship events for players to attend.
The Gunners want to take a squad of around 30 to Dubai and injured players doing rehab, such as Takehiro Tomiyasu, may travel anyway to be part of the group. Such a situation happened in 2020, when the likes of Kieran Tierney travelled to Dubai to continue with their rehab.
Arsenal are finalising their squad and there could be some issues around under-18 players going, as not all have had their second dose of the Covid-19 vaccination. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who has not played for the club since last month, is not expected to travel.
Technical director Edu and director of football operations Richard Garlick are planning to stay in the UK to work on possible transfer deals. If new players do sign, Arsenal will try and get them out to Dubai to join the squad.
Arsenal are working hard to bring players in, but at present New England Revolution goalkeeper Matt Turner is the furthest along of any possible deal. His arrival would surely pave the way for Bernd Leno to leave.
Once back in England, Arsenal will look to play a behind-closed-doors friendly before they return to action against Wolves at Molineux on February 10.
Arsenal have games to reschedule due to postponements and one match that could be confirmed for soon after they return from Dubai is their home clash with Wolves.
Arsenal were due to host Bruno Lage’s side on December 28, but the visitors had to pull out due to Covid issues in their squad.
Talks are underway about when that game could be played, but midweek during the week commencing February 14 is being viewed as a possible option.
