Arsenal have confirmed their entire pre-season fixture list today, with two further Reserve team friendlies being announced.
In addition to the previously-arranged encounter with Lincoln on July 20th, Neil Banfield’s side will also take on Maidenhead United on July 28th and Boreham Wood, whose Meadow Park ground plays host to Arsenal Ladies, on August 4th.
Steve Bould’s under-18s side will participate in the four-team Toomey Trophy, which will be hosted by Southend, over the weekend of July 25th and 26th, and it is expected that this will be an opportunity to bed in the majority of the new scholars into the team set-up, including recently-arrived goalkeeper Sean McDermott.
Some of the more experienced Reserve players; the likes of Nacer Barazite, Jay Simpson and Henri Lansbury, will also be hoping to feature in some of the first-team friendlies, including the Emirates Cup which is staged on August 1st and 2nd.
The traditional curtain-raiser against Barnet on July 18th is likely to be used by manager Arsene Wenger as an opportunity to assess as many players as possible in a game situation, with wholesale changes expected at half-time in that particular fixture.
Following this, the first-team will fly to Austria for the pre-season tour and will face SC Columbia on July 21st, and Szombathelyi Haladas a week later.
Further friendlies against Hannover 96 and Valencia are also scheduled, although it is unlikely that many Reserve players will be involved in these fixtures.
It promises to be an exciting pre-season as we get to have another look at some of the club’s brightest talents and Wenger decides which youngsters are ready for the Carling Cup and which are in need of a loan spell.
