Last season – following a run of one win in seven in all competitions from December 9, 2023 to January 7, 2024 – Arsenal jetted off to Dubai for some much-needed soul-searching and vitamin D. They ended that campaign with 16 wins from their final 18 Premier League games, pipped to the title on the final day by Manchester City.
Arteta likes consistency and familiarity in these Dubai trips, so Arsenal will be at the same training centre as last year – the Nad Al Sheba (NAS) sports complex.
Perfection will also be needed to go further than the last 16 in the Champions League next month, a tough ask from a paper-thin squad following Arsenal’s failure to recruit a forward in January.
Most importantly, Arteta needs to keep his players fit, especially Kai Havertz – the German international is the club’s only fit centre forward at the club with Gabriel Jesus out for the rest of the season with an ACL rupture.
Arsenal usually stay in hotels near the famous Dubai Palm, with club officials previously raving over having everything at their doorstep away from training, including shopping malls and restaurants.
