It is a little over two weeks until Arsenal play their first competitive match of the new season when they take on Manchester City in the Community Shield on August 16. Mikel Arteta’s side will be full of confidence having claimed their first Premier League title in 22 years and the clash at Wembley presents an immediate opportunity to win more silverware ahead of what is expected to be another competitive campaign.
Before that the Gunners will play four pre-season matches with the first taking place in Spain this evening as they travel to take on Girona at the Estadi Montilivi. The match is Arsenal’s first public pre-season game of the summer having beaten MK Dons in a behind closed doors fixture last week.
New signings Christos Tzolis and Illan Meslier featured in that match and both have been selected for tonight’s squad. So too have five players freshly back from the World Cup with Piero Hincapie, Viktor Gyokeres, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Magalhaes all training during the week.
Arsenal are also circling more incomings with Newcastle’s Bruno Guimaraes heavily linked to make the move to the Emirates and Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr a rumoured possibility. Arteta though will only be focused on tonight’s match and continuing pre-season with a win.
Follow all the updates from Girona v Arsenal with our live blog below:
Arsenal’s new signing
One of the big signings for Arsenal this summer has been Christo Tzolis from Club Brugge.
The 24-year-old scored 43 goals in 108 appearances for the Belgian side and Arsenal will be hoping he can boost their attacking capabilities.
Sporting Director Andrea Berta said: “We’re delighted to have completed the signing of Christos Tzolis.
“Christos is an extremely versatile attacking player who naturally operates on the left but is comfortable across the front line. He’s an excellent finisher with both feet, thrives in tight spaces, and possesses incredible technical ability.
“Christos has produced outstanding numbers in terms of goals and assists over the last three seasons, and he’s a player who will raise the technical level of our squad, while bringing positive energy, enthusiasm, and a strong mentality to our team.
“We’re confident Christos will make a significant contribution to our club, and we hope our supporters will enjoy watching him play in an Arsenal shirt.
“We look forward to sharing this exciting new chapter together.”
Jurrien Timber leaves Arsenal pre-season camp in latest injury blow
Jurrien Timber has left Arsenal’s pre-season camp in Spain for a check-up on his long-standing groin injury.
Dutch defender Timber missed most of the final two months of last season due to the injury. He did make a substitute appearance in the Champions League final defeat to PSG, but then missed the World Cup.
Girona early team news
Girona, meanwhile, welcomed back Morocco midfielder Azzedine Ounahi from World Cup duty who could feature in a midfield against one-time Manchester United flop Donny van de Beek.
Predicted Girona XI: Krapyvytsov; A. Martinez, Lopez, Yaakobishvili, Moreno; Beltran, Ounahi; Camara, Misehouy, Gil; Vanat.
Arsenal’s early team news
Arsenal are already lumbered with defensive injury problems after Ben White and Jurrien Timber left the camp nursing fresh woes, joining William Saliba who is out for a number of months with a back issue picked up at the World Cup.
Piero Hincapie, Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres have all joined up with the squad after the World Cup so could be in contention.
Predicted Arsenal XI: Kepa; Mosquera, Salmon, Calafiori, Hincapie; Lewis-Skelly, Norgaard; Dowman, Nwaneri, Tzolis; Jesus.
How can I watch it?
Fans can watch the clash on Arsenal.com by purchasing the pre-season pass, which costs £14.99 – or £9.99 if purchased before 9am on the day of the match.
This will also allow you to stream the club’s remaining pre-season fixtures against Real Betis, Borussia Dortmund and Como.
When is Girona vs Arsenal?
Arsenal’s pre-season friendly with Girona kicks off at 7pm BST on Saturday 1 August at Estadi Montilivi.
Arsenal v Girona
Arsenal take their pre-season campaign in front of fans for the first time with a trip to Catalonia as they take on LaLiga outfit Girona.
The Gunners eased past MK Dons in a 3-0 behind-closed-doors win a few days ago, with Mikel Arteta hoping to go two for two as preparations continue for their Premier League title defence.
Fans have been whipped up into a frenzy by the Vinicius Jr transfer saga but all eyes will be on Christos Tzolis, the new arrival from Club Brugge who is set to get his first official run-out.
Good afternoon!
Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of tonight’s pre-season friendly between Arsenal and Girona.
The Gunners had travelled to Spain for their first public match of the summer and will hope to kick off proceedings with a win.
They are only two weeks out from a competitive clash against Man City in the Community Shield and Mikel Arteta will be hoping to get his men up to speed as soon as possible.
Kick off for this one is at 7pm and we’ll have all the build up beforehand so stick around.
