Arsenal have announced their three German World Cup champions will miss the start of the new season owing to manager Arsene Wenger having given them extended leave for recuperation following their international victory in Brazil.
The French coach has confirmed Germany stars Mesut Ozil, Lukas Podolski and Per Mertesacker will miss the two opening domestic fixtures of the season for Arsenal – which are the Community Shield match against Manchester City on Sunday and the Premier League debut game against Crystal Palace on Saturday 16 August.
Wenger explained his reasoning behind granting the three Germans the additional time off and said it is because he believes they need time for rest and mental preparation in order to rejoin their club with the hunger to win, following their World Cup highs with the national team.
“It’s not ideal but the final of the World Cup was on July 13 and when they went back to Germany, they lost a few days for celebrations,” the Arsenal boss told the club’s official website.
“They played seven games at the World Cup in addition to the whole English season.
“Having the experience of a team that has won the World Cup (always) makes it difficult mentally to come back and be sharp and hungry straight away again.
“You have the choice, you get them back very quickly and you lose them in October, or you give them a needed rest to build them up again.
“They have an individual programme that they follow so they could be very quick.”