Robin van Persie, Cesc Fabregas among Arsenal players pulling out of international duty

According to the official Arsenal site, Robin van Persie, Cesc Fabregas, Kieran Gibbs, Johan Djourou, and Aaron Ramsey have all withdrawn from this week's international fixtures.

According to the site, van Persie is suffering from flu.  Cesc Fabregas is ill as well, suffering from gastroenteritis according to the Guardian.  Arsenal supporters will recall that Tomas Rosicky had the flu as well a couple of weeks ago; if the illness is spreading in the changing room, there could be problems for the team.

The website was not clear about why Gibbs and Ramsey withdrew from England U-21s and Wales, respectively.  Djourou was injured in the match against Newcastle on Saturday and is out for an as-yet undisclosed period of time.  It is not known yet how long van Persie and Fabregas could miss with their illnesses, but the pair have been combining very well since the former's return.

Other Gunners in international action this week include Theo Walcott and Jack Wilshere (England), Laurent Koscielny, Abou Diaby, Bacary Sagna, Gael Clichy (France), Nicklas Bendtner (Denmark), Andrei Arshavin (Russie), Marouane Chamakh (Morocco), Tomas Rosicky (Czech), Wojciech Szczesny (Poland), and Henri Lansbury (England U-21s).