Arsenal vs Monaco LIVE! Emirates Cup match stream, latest team news, lineups, TV, prediction today
The Gunners wrap up their eventful pre-season campaign with an Emirates Cup clash against French opposition tonight. This annual summer competition returned last year in a new one-off game format, with Arsenal thrashing Sevilla 6-0 to set the table for their subsequent Premier League title bid. Usually on a weekend, the looming Community Shield showdown with Manchester City at Wembley on Sunday means itâs a rare midweek slot for another high-profile clash.
Arsenal return home after trips to Germany and the United States, where an eight-goal thriller against Barcelona made up for an otherwise slow sequence of results that included losing to Manchester United. Declan Rice missed that 5-3 win over the LaLiga champions in Los Angeles as an injury precaution, but should be in line to return this evening as the likes of fellow new signings Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber also prepare for their home debuts.
Monaco finished sixth in Ligue 1 last term and are now managed by new boss Adi Hutter, who oversaw three straight friendly wins before a loss to Genoa last time out stunted their progress. Follow Arsenal vs Monaco at the Emirates Cup live below, with expert analysis from Standard Sportâs Matt Verri in north London!
Live updates
Arteta challenges Arsenal to share scoring burden
Arsenal have shared the goals around nicely during this pre-season tour, with several players getting in on the act throughout the summer.
Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz, Leandro Trossard (twice) and Fabio Vieira were all on target against Barcelona in LA last week, a trend that is going to have to continue if Arsenal are to pose a genuine threat to Treble winners Manchester City once again this term and also compete on their return to the Champions League.
Mikel Arteta is evidently pleased to have such strong options in front of goal and challenged his forwards to give him a selection headache each and every week.
âWe need to score as many goals as possible and if we have someone who scores 25, 30, 40 goals great,â he said. âGabi [Jesus] didnât score [against Barcelona] but itâs the best Gabi I have seen for months. Transmitting that energy, that belief.
âHe was creating a lot of chaos, a lot of good moments and making everyone better. Iâm really pleased with that and the contribution of Kai [Havertz].
âHe has that quality and thatâs why heâs playing that position with Leo [Trossard]. We have a lot of options up front and they are going to have to compete between them to give me a hard time.â
Arteta offers latest Arsenal transfer update
Arsenal are clearly focused on outgoings at the moment after their impressive early summer transfer drive saw them net all of top targets Declan Rice, Jurrien Timber and Kai Havertz as they splashed out more than ÂŁ200m.
Auston Trusty is joining Sheffield United, with Burnley leading the race for Albert Sambi Lokonga and Besiktas now showing interest in Nicolas Pepe.
However, rumours are also starting to pick back up again regarding potential further incomings with a month left in the current window.
Asked about Arsenalâs latest transfer dealings after the win over Barcelona, Mikel Arteta said: âWell, we have 30 players here which is unsustainable. Obviously, the market is still open and things can happen. We are prepared.
âIâm really happy with the squad we have at the moment. We have improvements to make in terms of what we want to do in games and we still have to do that. Overall really pleased with the team.â
Arteta sends message over Arsenal playing style
Mikel Arteta admits that the game against Barcelona simply got out of hand, though there was certainly no one complaining inside the packed-out SoFi Stadium as they were treated to a feisty and hugely entertaining goal-fest.
He said: âIt got really competitive for a friendly match. It got that way after the first tackle, the first goal. Playing in front of 70,000 people helps create an atmosphere.
âThey are elite players and they all want to win. But at the end, I think it got a bit too much for a friendly, but I think the show that we put in for all the people that came to watch was really good.â
Arteta also confirmed that the way they performed in LA was exactly the blueprint he has for his side this season, albeit with obvious defensive improvements needed.
âYes, thatâs how we want to play,â he said. âWe want to smother a rival, weâll play the game we can, but weâll play the game in any field we go to. Weâll play the same way in any game we play.â
Arteta hits back at Xavi criticism over Arsenal âintensity’
Arsenalâs clash with Barcelona in LA was a friendly in name only, with so many goals, furious tackles and feisty moments.
Barca boss Xavi even complained to Mikel Arteta about the Gunnersâ intensity in what was only his sideâs first friendly of the summer after illness forced the cancellation of their meeting with Juventus.
He said: âI said to Mikel at the end of the game, it was like a Champions League tie with the intensity they put in. It was not normal for a friendly, but I understand everyone wants to win. For us, it was our first friendly and we went into it off the back of loads of players having had a bug.â
Arteta had little time for those complaints from his compatriot, however.
âAt the end of the day, soccer belongs to the players,â he said. âWeâre playing in front of 70,000 people and as soon as the game starts theyâll rebel against the coaches to do what they want. As soon as thereâs the first foul of the game theyâll start getting intense and theyâll start playing.â
Arsenal vs Monaco prediction
Monaco have been in decent form so far in pre-season, but Arsenal certainly have more quality and will be keen to deliver in front of their home fans before the serious business begins.
The intensity from the Gunners has been clear even in the recent friendlies and more of the same can be expected here in a comfortable win, even if the defence has looked vulnerable at times.
Arsenal to win, 3-1.
Monaco team news
Monaco are of course without the services of French defender Axel Disasi, who is set to complete a ÂŁ38.6m transfer to Chelsea this week.
Adi Hutter is also unable to call upon Swiss international forward Breel Embolo for tonightâs game at the Emirates.
Arsenal team news
Headline ÂŁ105million summer signing Declan Rice should be involved again for Arsenal tonight after missing the 5-3 win over Barcelona in Los Angeles last week as an injury precaution after a knock suffered in training.
He will be gunning to make his home debut alongside fellow new recruits Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber.
âDec had quite a strong kick in training and didnât want to take the risk, he wasnât comfortable to train yesterday and today, and we decided not to play him,â manager Mikel Arteta said after that eight-goal thriller at SoFi Stadium.
Oleksandr Zinchenko remains a major doubt after missing Arsenalâs entire US tour with a muscle issue, while Reiss Nelson and Folarin Balogun have also both been battling foot problems.
Mohamed Elneny remains sidelined along with Albert Sambi Lokonga, with the likes of Nicolas Pepe, Nuno Tavares and Cedric Soares not involved in pre-season preparations.
Arsenal predicted XI (4-3-3): Ramsdale; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber; Rice, Odegaard, Havertz; Saka, Jesus, Trossard
Where to watch Arsenal vs Monaco
TV channel and live stream: In the UK, tonightâs game will be broadcast live on Arsenalâs official media channel. A match pass costs ÂŁ6.99.
Welcome to Arsenal vs Monaco in the Emirates Cup
Good afternoon and welcome to the Evening Standardâs live coverage of Arsenal vs Monaco in the Emirates Cup.
The Gunners welcome French opposition to north London tonight for a midweek showdown, with the small matter of a Community Shield clash with Treble-winners Manchester City looming at Wembley on Sunday.
Itâs been a mixed bag of pre-season results for Arsenal so far, but Mikel Arteta will be expecting his side to build on their thrilling 5-3 win over Barcelona that closed their US tour in a final friendly contest before the serious stuff begins.
Arsenal are the current holders of the Emirates Cup of course, having thrashed Sevilla 6-0 in the tournamentâs return as a one-off fixture last summer. A similar result here could set the table for another Premier League title tilt.
Kick-off in N7 tonight is at 6pm BST, so stay tuned for match build-up plus all the latest team news and live updates, with expert analysis from Standard Sportâs Matt Verri at the Emirates Stadium.
