Arsenal vs Sevilla

The first edition of the Emirates Cup since 2019 pits invitational competition’s hosts Arsenal against La Liga powerhouse Sevilla at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal come into proceedings on the back of a 2-1 defeat to fellow London rivals Brentford, though it’s worth mentioning that Mikel Arteta fielded an understrength line-up against the ‘Bees.’ By contrast, inspired by top summer signing Gabriel Jesus, the ‘Gunners’ went from strength to strength during their pre-season United States Tour, winning all three matches by an aggregate score of 9-1. A brace of two-goal margin triumphs over Everton & Orlando City to kickstart their US Tour served to get Arsenal into shape ahead of a scintillating 4-0 romping of arch-rivals Chelsea on their final day in the US. The Londoners will now be looking to avenge a 2-1 defeat in their only previous Emirates Cup meeting with Sevilla and halt a three-match winless H2H run (D1, L2).

In the meantime, Sevilla long formed part of the La Liga title race in 2021/22, yet they ultimately had to settle for a fourth-place finish. Even so, Julen Lopetegui’s side will show up at the Emirates Stadium in a confident mood after going unbeaten in their last nine outings, 2021/22 included (W4, D5). Indeed, ‘Los Rojiblancos’ have won two of their three pre-season fixtures so far (D1), including a 6-0 demolition of Ligue 1 minnows Angers last time out. But don’t expect Sevilla to be that prolific in London, as they had netted under 1.5 goals in seven successive games before picking Angers apart.