International Break: Thirteen Arsenal Stars Who Scored for their Countries

Arsenal had a host of players who went to the war front at their different countries over the international break and it is a thing of joy to see a vast majority of them returning with their heads up high.

We did not just see players from the first team penning their names in the goal and assist books of their national sides but also, there were some from our youth side. The stats from the outings made it look as if only Arsenal stars were out to represent their respective fatherlands.

From Alexis Sanchez’s goal against Brazil and his double against Peru, to Santi Cazorla and Olivier Giroud’s brace etc., one will begin to question why some still think Arsene Wenger's men are not fit to be termed ‘title contenders.

Sanchez despite having an injury scare was not given a rest by Chile. He was used in both games against Brazil and Peru and that decision was not regretted as the Arsenal forward scored one in the first before scoring two and assisting one in the second.

In case you did not hear, something funny happened before Chile's game against Peru. Some Peruvians knowing the amount of damage Sanchez is capable of doing to any team tried to cast a spell on him. They took his kit, made incantations and placed a tortoise on it. All these they did just to make him powerless against them. Unfortunately for them, he was the masterminder of their 4-3 loss. Lol.

The greatly despised Olivier Giroud had something to make his critics keep quiet at least for a moment. He gave France their 2-1 victory against Denmark by scoring two first half goals last Thursday night. Another player with a brace was Santi Cazorla and that came when Spain faced Luxembourg on Friday.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott got one goal each for England against Estonia and Lithuania respectively.

Not also forgetting Aaron Ramsey's contribution for Wales. He gave Coleman's side the opener as they featured in their Euro 16 qualifier game with Andorra. Also on target were Chuba Akpom who scored in his England U-21 debut with Kazakhstan, Serge Gnabry who bagged one in the Germany U-21 6-0 win over Faroe Islands, and lest I forget, Mesut Ozil's assist in Germany's 2-1 beating of Georgia. Today is Ozil's 27th birthday. Wishing him more years.

Now, open to the book of Joel chapter 1 verse 0. Hehehe! Our very own Joel Campbell featured for Costa Rica as they defeated the USA 1-0. The only goal in that encounter came from him. Still wondering why he has not started getting regular football? Don't worry, he is one for the future.

(Yawns) Don't mind me. I am already getting tired because these players are just too much and besides, I have malaria fever. Calm down! I will be okay, maybe as soon as I see Arsenal in action again.

To end the list, let me just run through the names of our youth academy players who also scored during the break. They are Ainsley Maitland-Niles (came on as a sub in the 74th min), Chris Willock, Stephy Mavididi and Kaylen Hinds (all scored in the same game: England U-17 8 0 DR Congo U-20).

While celebrating our players, let's also be happy that a great number of them came back with no serious injuries. Yeah, one or two might have knocks but that should zoom off so quick.

In other news, today is Arsenal's AGM. It is a yearly event which is aimed at discussing matters affecting the club. It also includes an interactive session with fans, so expect a lot of questions, especially on transfer issues. Bye for now.