Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal face Italian giants AC Milan in Singapore on Wednesday, as the Gunners kick off their tour of Asia with plenty of new faces and expectations are sky-high ahead of the new season.
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Arsenal have already signed Noni Madueke, Martin Zubimendi, Kepa Arrizabalaga and Christian Norgaard ahead of the new campaign, with Viktor Gyokeres and Cristhian Mosquera rumored to be arriving soon too as new sporting director Andrea Berta has been busy. After three-straight second place finishes in the Premier League and losing in the Champions League semifinals to eventual winners PSG last season, Arteta knows his Arsenal side must deliver silverware this season. That quest beings properly now as they face Milan, Newcastle and Spurs in the next 10 days in friendlies, and Arsenal are ready to take that final step. Can they do it?
AC Milan are coming off a hugely disappointing season in Serie A as they finished in eight place and failed to qualify for Europe as a late-season surge wasn’t enough to salvage a woeful campaign. Christian Pulisic is Milan’s star attacking talent and the USMNT winger is fresh and fit after he asked to not be selected for the Gold Cup this summer. Massimiliano Allegri is now AC Milan’s manager and they have added veteran Luka Modric in midfield this summer as they aim to turn things around quickly and get back into the Champions League, at the very least.
How to watch Arsenal vs AC Milan live, stream link and start time
Kick off time: 7:30am ET Wednesday (July 23)
Venue: Singapore National Stadium — Singapore
TV Channel, Streaming: Paramount+ in USA
Arsenal team news, focus
Norgaard, Kepa and Zubimendi are all in line to make their Arsenal debuts, while Madueke is still recovering after playing his part in Chelsea’s Club World Cup campaign before signing for Arsenal and will train with his new team when they return to the UK. The only injury absentee is Gabriel Jesus as he continues to recover from his ACL injury last season. Kai Havertz will be up top and it will be intriguing to see how new signing Zubimendi slots in to midfield alongside Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard.
AC Milan team news, focus
Pulisic was Milan’s top goalscorer last season and both he and Rafael Leao give AC Milan something special in attack. Modric’s arrival seems like it will be crucial as the veteran midfielder will dictate the tempo of the game and bring back some much-needed control. Milan massively underperformed last season but new manager Allegri will tighten them up defensively and they will be dangerous on the counter.
Arsenal vs AC Milan prediction
It’s tough to predict how a preseason game will go but I think we can safely say there will be plenty of goals and Arsenal will probably prevail. Arsenal 4-2 AC Milan.
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