Unai Emery is expected to give Arsenal’s youngsters a chance to prove their worth as the Gunners begin their pre-season fixtures with a game against Colorado Rapids in Denver.
Arsenal’s 29-man squad that travelled to the USA included a host of the brightest prospects in the youth setup, including England Under-21 winger Reid’s Nelson, striker Eddie Nketiah and midfielder Joe Willock.
They are among the players bidding to earn a place in Unai Emery’s first-team squad for next season, with Arsenal committed to giving their top young players a chance to shine on bigger stages.
There are plenty of prospects for Arsenal to get excited about and all eyes will be on Gabriel Martinelli, the Brazilian forward whose £6million arrival from São Paulo club Ituano is so far the only business the Gunners have completed in the transfer window.
If the 18-year-old is to be considered for a wide role he will face fierce competition from a host of top prospects, including Nelson and Bukayo Saka.
With a game against Bayern Munich to come 48 hours later the likes of Mesut Ozil, Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are likely to be on the bench but there could be roles for a few familiar faces, including Carl Jenkinson, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Calum Chambers.
The latter’s role in Arsenal’s plans for next season promises to be one of the most intriguing sub-plots of a tour that has been dominated by Laurent Koscieny’s refusal to travel.
Chambers had been expected to leave the club this summer - Arsenal had offered him to Crystal Palace as a makeweight in a deal for Wilfried Zaha - but with Koscielny determined to return to his native France the Gunners may need to retain the young centre-back, who spent last season on loan at Fulham.
Arsenal predicted XI: Macey; Jenkinson, Chambers, Medley, Thompson; Maitland-Niles, Burton; Nelson, Willock, Saka; Nketiah.
