The Emirates Cup is set to return, and Arsenal will come up against some familiar faces in their final pre-season preparation matches.
The Emirates Cup is an annual pre-season tournament which takes place at the Emirates Stadium, and Arsenal play host to several teams from across the world.
The format has changed over the years, but Arsenal will still host Bayer Leverkusen and Olympique Lyonnais in the tournament before the Premier League begins.
Whilst Lyon star and former Arsenal captain Alexandre Lacazette is still tied up with the Olympic Games, Arsenal will come up against another former captain in Granit Xhaka, as well as Hale End graduate Ainsley Maitland-Niles.
Former Arsenal youngster Nathan Tella is also thriving alongside Xhaka at Leverkusen, but never made a senior appearance for Arsenal unlike Maitland-Niles and the Switzerland star.
Xhaka and Maitland-Niles will become the seventh and eighth former Arsenal players to return to North London with other teams in the Emirates Cup, and there have been some iconic comebacks in the past.
Six former Arsenal players who returned in the Emirates Cup
Julio Baptista
Brazilian forward Julio Baptista spent one season on loan at Arsenal from Real Madrid in 2006-07, in which he recorded an iconic four-goal haul away at Liverpool in the League Cup.
In the 2008 Emirates Cup, Arsenal came up against Real Madrid, and Baptista was in the starting XI against his former club.
Arsenal won 1-0 through an Emmanuel Adebayor penalty, and this meant that Hamburg won the trophy overall.
Jose Antonio Reyes
Late Spanish forward Jose Antonio Reyes was an iconic figure in his short time at Arsenal, but departed for Spain, initially on loan at Real Madrid as part of the Baptista deal, before joining their crosstown rivals in Atletico Madrid.
The 2009 tournament saw Atletico come to the Emirates, and Arsenal won 2-1, with Reyes starting for the visitors. Andrei Arshavin opened the scoring in the 86th minute, before German Pacheco equalised for the La Liga side in the 88th. However, Arshavin doubled his lead in the 90th minute to have the last laugh, and Arsenal won the cup.
Mathieu Flamini
French midfielder Mathieu Flamini departed Arsenal for AC Milan in 2008, and in 2010, the Italian giants were invited to the Emirates Cup.
Flamini started against his old team, and Arsenal took the lead through new signing Marouane Chamakh in the first half, but Alexandre Pato struck to secure a draw. Arsenal won the tournament after beating Celtic the day before.
Flamini then returned to Arsenal as a free agent in 2013, and spent three more years there before leaving in 2016.
Thierry Henry
Thierry Henry is arguably the greatest player in Arsenal’s history, but even he has played against his old team on a few occasions.
In 2011, MLS side New York Red Bulls were invited to the Emirates Cup, and Henry was plying his trade stateside.
There was a lot of excitement at the prospect of Henry returning to the Emirates, but Arsenal disappointed on the day. Robin van Persie opened the scoring, but a Kyle Bartley own goal meant they fell to a second draw in two days, after their previous game against Boca Juniors ended 2-2.
Arsenal were booed off the pitch, but the main event was Henry’s return, and Wenger even wanted him to play the final five minutes of the game for his old side. However, his request was denied by the referee.
“They say great clubs never die, it looks like great players never die as well, because Thierry showed us today he is still top quality with his feet and with his head,” Wenger stated after the game.
Henry did then return to Arsenal on loan six months later, and scored a legendary goal in the FA Cup against Leeds United on his comeback.
Emmanuel Eboue
The 2013 Emirates Cup was played in front of a fairly tense atmosphere after an unproductive summer transfer window. Arsenal drew 2-2 with Napoli on the first day, and Olivier Giroud continued his fine scoring form, but a 2-1 defeat to Galatasaray foreshadowed an opening-day defeat.
Theo Walcott scored for Arsenal, but a brace from Chelsea legend Didier Drogba handed the Turkish side a win. There was some joy though, as former Arsenal defender Emmanuel Eboue also featured for the visitors, captaining the side and receiving a warm reception from the home crowd.
Nicklas Bendtner
Another iconic character returned to the Emirates as striker Nicklas Bendtner played for Wolfsburg in the 2015 edition of the cup.
Arsenal followed up a 6-0 thrashing of Lyon with a 1-0 win over the German side. Theo Walcott scored the winner, but Bendtner was warmly received.
Bendtner is now following Flamini in venturing into business beyond football, and both have scored some iconic goals for Arsenal in the past.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
