Let’s take a look at some notable highlights surrounding the closed friendly match of the Emirates Stadium team.
This weekend, Arsenal and Luton Town are both out of the field, when the London derby between the Gunners and Crystal Palace takes place on Monday (UK time), and the match between Luton and Burnley has been postponed due to construction work. at Kenilworth Road. So, the two teams had a closed friendly match on Thursday to “warm up” with a 3-0 victory in favor of the Emirates Stadium team, thanks to a goal from Bukayo Saka and a brace from Leandro Trossard.
It is known that the match does not take place in the usual format, but 90 minutes is divided into 3 rounds. However, of course, there are still many highlights worth mentioning around this ‘unusual’ confrontation.
Rookie debut
After much speculation, finally, David Raya has officially arrived at Emirates through a loan contract. Perhaps, Raya herself did not expect that her first Arsenal shirt came from a closed friendly match. It is known that the Spaniard was present for about 60 minutes in the match, initially getting acquainted with the philosophy of coach Mikel Arteta and forming a bond with his new teammates.
Although detailed developments have not been disclosed, but with Arsenal keeping a clean sheet, Raya certainly has made an impressive debut. According to Football London, it will take a while longer for Raya to officially debut for the Gunners, which is most likely when the Champions League group stage kicks off. Therefore, the last friendly match was really a valuable experience for the star of Brentford staff.
The reinforcements are back
Despite appearing on the bench in the opening match of the Premier League, in fact, Reiss Nelson was not eligible to play when his fitness condition was still being assessed continuously. However, it seems that the British talent is now back in top form, as he was placed by Arteta to start in the confrontation with Luton Town.
More importantly, Oleksandr Zinchenko – who previously missed both pre-season and the game against Nottingham Forest due to injury, also featured in the win over Luton. It can be affirmed, this is a sign that the Ukrainian star is preparing to return, and obviously this is not more positive news for the Gunners, when Jurrien Timber has been injured and is expected to long term out.
Steps to run for the Champions League
In the next phase of the season, Arsenal will have to play 2 matches a week when the Champions League Group Stage officially kicks off. Therefore, a friendly match taking place in the middle of the week is also an opportunity for the players to gradually get used to the intense intensity of the competition, and prepare in advance for the upcoming physical challenges.