Laurent Koscielny, Olivier Giroud and Mesut Ozil could return for Arsenal

Arsenal trio Mesut Ozil, Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny are all in contention to make their first appearance of the season against Premier League champions Leicester City, following an extended rest after the European Championships. All three players missed the opening day defeat to Liverpool but could feature at the King Power Stadium.

Koscielny and Giroud both played for the France side that reached the Euro 2016 final on 10 July. Ozil meanwhile was part of the Germany team that reached the semi-final and were knocked out by Les Bleus. The players were given time off after their exploits in the summer but will be thrust back into action for the second game of the campaign.

Manager Arsene Wenger admits that the recall of Koscielny is a gamble but it might be a risk worth taking, with captain Per Mertesacker and Gabriel both out injured. Summer signing Rob Holding was partnered with Calum Chambers at the centre of an Arsenal defence that shipped four goals at the Emirates Stadium.

"I will consider them for selection this weekend," he said, according to the official Arsenal website. "Of course they have not played any games for a while, so I have to be selective and I cannot go for the three because that would be too risky. But basically with Laurent Koscielny I have no choice! If I have to take a gamble on one, it's certainly on him."

The defeat to Liverpool was compounded by the loss of two players to injury. Alex Iwobi and Aaron Ramsey were both substituted during the game with muscle problems and neither player will be available until after the upcoming international break at the start of September.

"Both of them have minor muscular problems," Wenger added. "I think they will be out until after the international break but we feared worse – for Iwobi especially. It is a thigh problem for Iwobi, and Ramsey is a hamstring that will require two or three weeks. It is better news than we feared at the start."

While there is plenty of scrutiny over which players will join Arsenal, one player definitely staying at the club is Serge Gnabry. The 21-year-old is currently playing for Germany at the Rio Olympics, and despite interest from Hertha Berlin will be handed a new contract to deter clubs from his homeland.

"I want to keep Serge and to extend his contract," the coach added. "We stood by him for a long time. He want to West Brom and didn't get a game, and we had to rebuild his confidence when he came back. I allowed him go to Rio without playing for us at all, to get him back to competition and help Germany. He has been here for a long time and it is important for him to stay with us."