Alexandre Lacazette Granit Xhaka Nicolas Pepe David LuizGetty/Goal

Arsenal stars Lacazette, Xhaka, Pepe and Luiz warned over breaking lockdown rules

Four Arsenal stars have been spoken to by the club after photos emerged of the players flouting social distancing rules amid the countrywide lockdown, with the coronavirus pandemic still in full swing around the globe.

Nicolas Pepe, Alexandre Lacazette, David Luiz and Granit Xhaka were the players warned, with club-record signing Pepe having been filmed playing football with several friends in north London, while the Ivory Coast international shared footage of another game with friends on Instagram.

Centre-back Luiz and midfielder Xhaka were seen together in Southgate, while Lacazette was caught on camera standing very close to a car valeter, who had been brought in to clean the striker's Audi in his driveway.

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Lacazette's actions sparked questions as to whether hiring such a service was essential in the current lockdown.

An Arsenal spokesperson has confirmed the various incidents, telling The Sun : “Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We will be speaking to our players. 

“We were concerned so we have spoken to Nicolas, who shares a house with a number of relatives who were involved in this game. We have reminded him of the importance of everyone following the guidelines.”

Pepe had casually joined in a match at Colingdale's Graham Park on April 15, with police later closing off the astroturf pitch following complaints from locals.

Luiz and Xhaka, meanwhile, had been kicking a ball about between themselves on Tuesday near Oakwood Station in Southgate, north London.

Far from the only individuals to have been called out for flouting the government-imposed rules, cross-city rivals Tottenham recently saw Serge Aurier and Moussa Sissoko offer an apology for breaking social distancing guidelines in a training video shared on social media.

Jose Mourinho was also in the headlines after taking Tanguy Ndombele for training in a park , while Davinson Sanchez and Ryan Sessegnon were spotted together in a separate training session.

Elsewhere in the Premier League, Manchester City's Kyle Walker apologised for his actions in the wake of throwing a reported 'sex party' , while Aston Villa captain Jack Grealish has been lambasted for reportedly crashing his car despite having urged the public to stay indoors.

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