How Arsenal's International Presence Compares to Other Top Clubs

Summer 2013 is a rare quiet close season, with just a handful of World Cup qualifiers, the odd friendly and the low-profile Confederations Cup to distract Arsenal's international players from the rest and recovery they'll need to mount a more successful campaign next year. 

Not that international duty poses quite the threat to the team's well-being that it used to. Arsenal fans no longer need hold their breath in collective horror every time a certain Dutch international goes to ground, for example.

One of the most marked signs of the new soccer hierarchy is the concentration of elite international footballers across the handful of global elite clubs.

There are two distinct camps that boast the biggest international stars, and Arsenal do not fit into either.

First, there are the continental powers whose dominance of their domestic leagues makes them the natural home to their own nation's finest as well as magnets for top talent—Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus, Manchester United and Bayern Munich are classic examples.

Then there are the new moneyed elite whose financial muscle and sometimes hurried attempts to build instant success mean they can hoover up top talent voraciously—Chelsea, Manchester City, PSG and even the mildly farcical Anzhi Makhachkala being the prime candidates in that camp.

As perennial Champions League contestants under one of the world game's most highly respected managers, Arsenal certainly still attract internationals.

But financial constraints mean they are unlikely to compete for the signatures of the very top talent, where increasing demand for a limited pool of players has inflated both transfer fees and salaries to a realm only possible for the richest (and most spendthrift) clubs.

So the quality of international player at Arsenal's level is slightly different from that at the big-spending clubs.

Santi Cazorla and Nacho Monreal have both been selected for Spain's Confederations Cup squad, but obviously do not exert the same level of influence on that talent-bloated side as names like Andres Iniesta or Sergio Ramos.

Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny's excellent end to the Premier League season will help cement their places in the Germany and France defences respectively, while at the same time denting Thomas Vermaelen's bid to reinstate himself definitively alongside Man City's Vincent Kompany for Belgium (Jan Vertonghen's fantastic debut season at Spurs won't help, either—sparking rumours that Vermaelen may leave Arsenal to protect his international career).

Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have all had memorable turns in the England team, but the sense—particularly with the latter two—is that they represent more potential than finished product, and are still quite far from being staples of the side, like Chelsea's Ashley Cole or United's Wayne Rooney.

Bacary Sagna and Lukas Podolski's best international years appear to be behind them, while Olivier Giroud has yet to prove himself for France.

Gervinho is often lauded for his Ivory Coast performances (though mostly in relative terms to his less convincing Arsenal form), but certainly does not figure as importantly to the side as City's Yaya Toure or Galatasaray's Didier Drogba.

The Arsenal player with the biggest influence on his national teams is Tomas Rosicky, who is a talismanic captain for a sides that lies outside the international elite.

The overall international landscape at Arsenal is that of a solid, talented, in some cases very promising but not quite elite group—a reasonably accurate gauge of Arsenal's current status.

Gunners to Watch this June

Confederations Cup: Only Cazorla and Monreal will represent Arsenal in Brazil's World Cup warm-up tournament, June 15–30. 

World Cup 2014 Qualifying: Loanee Joel Campbell will be key to Costa Rica's bid for Concacaf qualification as they take on Honduras June 7, Mexico June 13 and Panama June 18. Rosicky will hope to extend his late-season form as the Czech Republic face Italy June 7, and Vermaelen will hope to get the start against Serbia the same evening. Gervinho is likely to feature against Gambia June 8 and Tanzania June 16.

International Friendlies: Walcott and Oxlade-Chamberlain are slated to make the trip to take on Brazil in the Maracana June 2. The same day, Mertesacker and Podolski will face USA at RFK Stadium. Cazorla and Monreal will take part in Spain's pre-Confederations Cup US tour, playing Haiti in Miami June 8 and Ireland at Yankee Stadium June 11.