Arsenal will compete in the Champions League again after reaching the quarter-finals last season, and they will encounter some familiar faces.
Mikel Arteta’s side were eliminated by Bayern Munich last season, with a familiar foe in Harry Kane, as well as former Hale End star Serge Gnabry both scoring at the Emirates Stadium in the first-leg of the quarter-finals.
Gnabry returned to Arsenal for the first time since he left in 2017, but he did not hold back in his celebrations after his goal.
It is not the first-time Arsenal have conceded to a former player in Europe, as Olivier Giroud scored for Chelsea in a dismal defeat in the 2019 Europa League final.
Arsenal will play eight matches in the league phase of the Champions League this season, and they will be facing three former players, who will hope to replicate what Gnabry managed.
Arsenal will face Sead Kolasinac in Atalanta clash
Arsenal’s trip to Atalanta will see them face former defender Sead Kolasinac, who left the club in January 2022.
The Bosnian has since reinvented himself as a centre-back in a three, and he was important as Atalanta beat Granit Xhaka’s Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League final last season.
Kolasinac has praised Arteta and Arsenal ahead of the clash in Bergamo, and it will be interesting to see how he fares against the likes of Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan will play against Arsenal for Inter Milan
Arsenal signed Henrikh Mkhitaryan in a swap deal with Alexis Sanchez, a deal that went so badly that both ended up playing together for Inter Milan.
Mkhitaryan never really settled at Arsenal despite showing glimpses of quality, but he did end up winning multiple titles at Inter Milan, and has become a key player in midfield.
The Armenian did score against Manchester United when playing for Arsenal not long after his move, and he will hope to strike against another one of his former clubs when the Gunners face Inter at the San Siro in November.
Folarin Balogun will return to the Emirates when Arsenal face Monaco
Arsenal have sold several graduates from the Hale End Academy in recent years, including striker Folarin Balogun.
Balogun had an incredible loan spell with Reims in France two seasons ago, which led to many calling for him to be given a chance at Arsenal.
However, Balogun was sold to Monaco for a substantial fee, and having managed just eight goals in 35 appearances, it is clear that this was the right decision.
The USMNT striker will hope to prove Arsenal wrong, and with Monaco travelling to the Emirates in December, he will have the chance to do so.
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