Mikel Arteta believes Riccardo Calafiori needs to have a “clear pre-season” so he can shine for Arsenal next year.
The Italian was struggling for fitness in the build-up to the game, which the Gunners won 2-1, and Arteta after revealed the club decided not to risk him.
Calafiori, who joined Arsenal last summer for around £40million from Bologna, has had five spells out injured this season and he has been absent for over 100 days.
Arteta hopes the defender can recover now and use pre-season to get fit and firing for the next campaign.
“We pushed Ricci a lot to make sure that he was fit for the last few games and he was two, three weeks ahead of schedule in his injury,” said Arteta.
“He’s been constantly dragged into areas where he was really, really stretched and he wasn’t comfortable the last week or two with a lot of things.
“Yes, they (Calafiori and Jurrien Timber) wanted to carry on - but we decided to give him (Calafiori) a break. He needs a rest.
“He needs to now make sure that he has a proper preparation, a clear pre-season to give him the best chance to have a successful season next season.”
