Arsenal are back on home soil this weekend as they take on Ligue 1 side Lyon in the Emirates Cup.
The Gunners have enjoyed a successful pre-season campaign thus far and now have three more matches to play before their Premier League opener against Newcastle United on August 11.
Arsenal
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Arsenal let slip a two-goal lead against Real Madrid in their most recent outing to draw 2-2 in normal time, before losing 3-2 on penalties to miss out on a bonus point in the International Champions Cup tie.
Unai Emery still had plenty of positives to take away from that match in Maryland, however, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette picking up from where they left off by finding the back of the net.
The Gunners had won their three previous friendlies heading into the Madrid match, seeing off Colorado Rapids 3-0, Bayern Munich 2-1 and Fiorentina 3-0.
Eddie Nketiah was the name on supporters' lips following the win over Fiorentina after scoring twice, adding to the goal he netted against Bayern.
Emery is slowly but surely shaping his squad with an eye on the trip to Newcastle in two weeks' time, and he now has another new player to integrate into his plans.
Thursday saw Arsenal confirm the arrival of Dani Ceballos from Real Madrid on a season-long loan, while William Saliba joined from Saint-Etienne but was loaned straight back to the French side.
Arsenal still have Angers and Barcelona to face this pre-season, but in front of their own supporters this is a big chance for Emery to lay down a marker in the revamped Emirates Cup.
The competition is now a one-day event, with Arsenal Women and Bayern Munich Women also taking part.
The early signs have been promising for the North London outfit; now they need to push on and build some momentum to take into the new season.
Recent form in pre-season: WWWD
Lyon
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Lyon have made a slow start to their summer programme, having suffered back-to-back losses to Servette and Genoa in their first two matches.
The French side now face a triple header of games against English opposition, with Liverpool and Bournemouth to come over the next week.
After finishing third in Ligue 1 last season, a whopping 19 points adrift of champions Paris Saint-Germain, Les Gones moved to bring in Sylvinho - a man with strong links to Arsenal from his playing days - as their new head coach.
It is therefore the start of a new era for Lyon following the three-and-a-half tenure of Bruno Genesio, and it is considered a major gamble as Sylvinho has never previously managed at the top level.
Joachim Andersen, Thiago Mendes, Jean Lucas and Youssouf Kone have all arrived since the end of last season, but that has been offset by the departures of key men Tanguy Ndombele, Ferland Mendy and Nabil Fekir.
French striker Moussa Dembele remains for now, though he has been strongly linked with Manchester United in recent days and it remains to be seen whether the club can keep hold of him.
It may only be pre-season, but Sylvinho needs to put an end to the losing run if he is to win over supporters.
Lyon are at a crossroads of sorts and require their top players - Dembele, Memphis Depay and Bertrand Traore - to step up.
Recent form in pre-season: LL
Team News
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Ceballos is in line for a first appearance in an Arsenal shirt after completing his loan move from Madrid on Thursday, but that is likely to come from the bench.
Hector Bellerin and Rob Holding are still on the comeback trail after missing a large part of last season with knee injuries, while Emile Smith Rowe and Konstantinos Mavropanos are also absent.
Emery decided against risking Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Shkodran Mustafi against Madrid as both players were carrying minor knocks, and he must now make a decision on whether to include them on Sunday.
Lucas Torreira, Alex Iwobi, Mohamed Elneny and Matteo Guendouzi have each been given an extended break following their international commitments earlier this summer.
Sylvinho used 20 different players in the seven-goal thriller against Genoa - a match that saw his side throw away a 3-1 lead.
Depay and Traore were brought on at half time and should be given the nod to start at the Emirates Stadium this weekend.
Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Leno; Jenkinson, Sokratis, Mustafi, Monreal; Xhaka, Willock; Aubameyang, Ozil, Mkhitaryan; Lacazette
Lyon possible starting lineup:
Lopes; Tete, Aubameyang, Rafael, Denayer; Mendes, Fofana, Depay; Kitala, Traore, Terrier
Head To Head
Arsenal and Lyon have only met twice in competitive matches, with those two fixtures coming in the 2000-01 Champions League second group stage.
The Gunners won 1-0 in France and played out a 1-1 draw at Highbury in the reverse encounter.
The sides also met in the Emirates Cup four years ago when Arsenal claimed a resounding 6-0 victory en route to winning the competition.
We say: Arsenal 2-0 Lyon
Arsenal have enjoyed a positive pre-season campaign so far and supporters will be further buoyed by the new signings made this week. Lyon, by comparison, have started their summer programme slowly and need to stop the rot before the losing mentality takes over.
Daniel Lewis
