Just over 12 months ago, Arsenal used domestic cup frustration to their advantage. During a two-week warm weather training camp they regrouped and went on to win eight league matches in a row.

The run extended to 11 unbeaten and 16 wins from the final 18 games. It wasn't enough to clinch the title but it was ample to ramp up serious pressure on Manchester City, forcing them to be near perfect as well.

In order to go one better than consecutive second-place finishes, Mikel Arteta knows that his team will need to be just as good in the final three months of this season. Coming off the back of a disappointing Carabao Cup exit to Newcastle United, the side have once more decided to make the most of the schedule.

Having left on Thursday, Arsenal are now back in Dubai. Owing to their FA Cup third round defeat to Manchester United last month, Arteta and his side have room to decompress before returning for a big push towards the exit.

They recaptured their form and 2022/23 creativity in the burst after a trip to the Middle East last year and must now do the same. Albeit with less time to tan in the sun, the FA Cup weekend has provided them with an out.

It has also given Arteta some room to breath. He has come in for criticism both for his recruitment influence and decisions and also the results, especially when in the domestic cups.

Now given a chance to reflect and move on, here is what the manager has to achieve before returning to play away to relegation-bound Leicester City.

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Get the injuries sorted

Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Jesus, Ben White, Bukayo Saka, Takehiro Tomiyasu. That is the list of currently unavailable Arsenal players. In an already small squad, its toll has been taken.

Jesus and Tomiyasu are not expected to be back for the foreseeable. White and Saka look like they will give a fitness boost in March, and Martinelli is set for a month away himself.

None of this, at this stage, can really be helped. The time without stretching the rest of the squad will be beneficial, though. Arteta can rest and work along with his players and hope that the time off comes good.

He will have the reintegration of Saka, especially, extremely high up on his to-do list moving forward, though. Although there will need to be careful management for the winger, Arsenal are a better team when he is in it and that is of top importance for Arteta.

Find the freedom

Arteta's drive to find control at Arsenal, something born out of the demands that come with chasing Manchester City for so long, has seen the fun drain away. Pragmatism has been the name of the game for over 18 months, and the one streak that the handbrake came off really showed that.

Arsenal smashed West Ham, Sheffield United, and Burnley in the weeks immediately after their last winter break. They battered Newcastle and would go on to punish Chelsea ruthlessly.

It brought back the spark and energised fans who had become tired and worn down by the relentless Pep Guardiola energy. The form and change in atmosphere at Arsenal fuelled the excitement of last summer's transfer window and gave reason for optimism heading into this season.

Unleashing the Arsenal squad and making them look like they are enjoying themselves will go a long way to lifting spirits. Outside of putting City to the sword it has been a slog and a lot of effort for Arsenal this year without much reward.

Solve the striker problem

There is no new striker to rely on but Arsenal have enough attacking options to still cause plenty of problems for their opponents this season. Be it via another run of Kai Havertz goals or more contribution from the wingers, Arteta does have some strong tools.

The key aspect is to get them playing well together. Martin Odegaard needs to find his form in front of goal again whilst Leandro Trossard must shoulder more responsibility for providing regular output, certainly from the start. One player to really look at is Ethan Nwaneri.

He is surely going to get more minutes on the flanks thanks to Martinelli's injury and he really deserves the chance. Nwaneri has been a bright spark along with Myles Lewis-Skelly this season. Both players can help project Arsenal up to another level.

With Lewis-Skelly, getting him some more midfield minutes would do his own development a lot of good. Between them the pair can lift things again.