- Last year Arsenal won 16 of their next 18 games after going on the Dubai trip
- Injured stars Bukayo Saka and Ben White joined the travelling party
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Bukayo Saka joined his Arsenal pals as they fled England for sunnier climes on Thursday afternoon.
Mikel Arteta is taking his men for a warm weather training camp in Dubai to nourish and prepare them for the business end of the campaign.
Last season the foreign jaunt had a transformative effect as the Gunners went on to win 16 of their next 18 games after just one win in seven beforehand.
Arteta knows he needs a similar rejuvenation to catch Liverpool, who are six points and a game in hand ahead of them, with a blockbuster clash lined up on May 10.
Injured stars Saka and Ben White are among the contingent heading out to the United Arab Emirates.
Saka’s initial prognosis was a return in March while White has slated to come back before the end of February.
Bukayo Saka joined his Arsenal team-mates as they flew to their warm weather training camp
Ben White had a laugh with Leandro Trossard before jetting out to Dubai from Stansted Airport
The UAE camp was critical last year as Arsenal went on to win 16 of their next 18 games (picture from 2024)
Meanwhile, 15-year-old attacking midfielder Max Dowman and goalkeeper Jack Porter, 16, are in the party.
Dowman has garnered interest from multiple Premier League clubs and Mail Sport has reported how Arteta is keen to integrate him into the squad to convince him to stay.
The teenager has already joined the first team for multiple training sessions and Rio Ferdinand has tipped him to be the next Hale End academy star to make his mark on the squad.
Arsenal have brought Under 21s manager Mehmet Ali to help the youngsters settle in and Dowman will still be expected to continue with his schoolwork.
Their stars flew out of Stansted Airport and will return ahead of their Premier League clash with Leicester on Saturday, February 15.
The club are using the same facilities as they did last year, the NAS Sports Complex.
However, Arteta will hope to avoid an awkward encounter like he had last year with celebrity chef ‘Salt Bae’.
The social media star chopped a steak in his trademark manner before lifting a piece of the prime meat into the bemused Spaniard’s mouth.
Fifteen-year-old wonderkid Max Dowman will still have to do schoolwork while on the trip
Raheem Sterling was in the zone as he boarded the plane ahead of the sun-soaked adventure
Myles lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri buddied up after breaking into the first team together
Jorginho eyeballed the camera as he joined the squad after Wednesday’s Newcastle defeat
It was a punishing night for the Gunners in the north east as they lost 4-0 on aggregate
Arsenal remain in the hunt for the Premier League and Champions League and will be grateful for the chance to recover after the Newcastle loss
This camp gives them an opportunity to recuperate following a bruising 2-0 Carabao Cup defeat to Newcastle, which cut off one avenue to a trophy.
The north Londoners were vanquished 4-0 on aggregate by the Magpies but still have hope in the Premier League and Champions League.
Asked last month what impact a winter camp could have on his injury-hit squad, Arteta said: ‘If we earn the right to do that, it will be great.
‘It has been a super-busy schedule, with a lot of demands, especially on the players, and with a lot of things going on.’
