After an emphatic 4-1 over Crystal Palace, Arsenal opened up an eight-point lead heading into the international break. This pause in the season though is something Gunners fans will be wary of.
Last year they found themselves in a good position to finish in the top four before a knee injury sustained by Kieran Tierney while on Scotland duty derailed their progress. Even as recently as the last international break they lost Gabriel Jesus for months to a knee injury sustained at the World Cup in Qatar. As the next 10 days tick by, Mikel Arteta admitted that he will be hoping for better luck this time around.
"I want to think positively," the Arsenal boss said after the Palace victory. "Touch wood, but I want to think positive. They’re going to have to play games, they have to do it in the way that they do it here or possibly even better with their country. We are in contact with all of them, they know how to look after them and hopefully it will all work out."
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As things stand, the Gunners have managed to avoid any major injuries, but with the likes of Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Oleksandr Zinchenko all set to play for their countries over the coming days, they're not out of the woods yet.
Assuming they all come through unscathed though, the Arsenal line-up could look very interesting when they return to Premier League action against Leeds on April 1.
In goal you'd expect Aaron Ramsdale to keep his No. 1 spot. He may not even feature for England given that Jordan Pickford is Gareth Southgate's top choice, although after Nick Pope's withdrawal means he has a chance. Matt Turner, meanwhile, has a lengthy trip to Grenada to contend with, so that's even more evidence that Ramsdale will start against Leeds if you needed it.
With Takehiro Tomiyasu out for the season, Ben White is almost nailed on to start at right-back. Throw in the fact he's not been called up to England duty, and there's not too much of a debate to be had there. Oleksandr Zinchenko is undoubtedly the first choice left back these days, with Kieran Tierney not having started since January.
Gabriel is another not to have been called up for international duty despite arguably being the best centre half in the Premier League this season so he'll be in the side, assuming he's fit.
Alongside him there is a bit of a question mark though. William Saliba was forced to withdraw from the France squad due to a back injury he sustained against Sporting CP. The early prognosis on the injury is that he could miss a few weeks which will make him a doubt for Leeds. Rob Holding did well in his place against Crystal Palace, so at this point you would expect him to play again.
Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka and Odegaard have all been called up for international duty with their respective nations. The trio have generally started when available this season, though. Fabio Vieira and Emile Smith Rowe are off for Portugal and England's respective under-21 teams and they'll hopefully be available off the bench if needed.
Bukayo Saka is now one of England's most important players as well as being one of Arsenal's. He'll be hoping to come back and play a key role in the Gunnerss title race. Alongside the 21-year-old there are some decisions to be made though.
Leandro Trossard has been superb since arriving January and is currently off on duty with Belgium. Back at London Colney his two main competitors, Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus, were both not called up for Brazil. This could well swing it in there favour when Arteta chooses his Leeds line up.
In flashes, Jesus has looked ready to come back into the Arsenal starting XI and make a crucial impact in their title run-in, while Martinelli was in arguably his best run of form all season before the international break.
Arsenal's possible starting XI after the international break - Ramsdale; White, Holding, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Partey, Xhaka, Odegaard; Saka, Jesus, Martinelli.
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