Five things to look out for at the Emirates Cup: Naby Keita, RB Leipzig, Arsenal's defence, Alexandre Lacazette

A look ahead to the pre-season tournament at the Emirates Stadium

Naby Keita will be one of the star attractions at the Emirates Cup (Getty)

Arsenal host RB Leipzig, Benfica and Sevilla in the ninth Emirates Cup pre-season tournament.

The competition started in 2007 and is held annually, with Arsenal winning it four times.

The tournament is largely seen as a fun day out for fans ahead of the new season, while it also offers supporters the chance to see the new summer signings for the first time ahead of the new season.

Arsenal will face Benfica on Saturday, which follows RB Leipzig vs Sevilla, before the Gunners take on the Spanish side on Sunday as Leipzig and Benfica collide.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will hope his side can lay down a marker ahead of next weekend’s Community Shield against Chelsea, which comes after Arsenal lost to the Blues 3-0 earlier in pre-season.

But what should you be looking out for this year?

Here’s five things to look out for at the Emirates Cup.

Naby Keita

Liverpool fans will get the chance to look at Naby Keita who has been the subject to three rejected bids from Jürgen Klopp’s side. RB Leipzig are determined to keep hold of Keita who scored eight goals in 31 appearances in Leipzig’s first season in the Bundesliga.

Liverpool have reportedly cooled their interest in the 22-year-old but RB Leipzig sporting director, Ralf Rangnick, conceded this week that Keita’s head has been turned by the speculation as his future remains uncertain.

Last week Keita’s training ground foul on Diego Demme left his teammate requiring treatment in hospital and training was abandoned.

Back three for Arsenal?

Arsene Wenger is continuing to trial using three at the back in pre-season with mixed success. The Gunners were humbled 3-0 by Premier League rivals Chelsea but managed a 1-1 draw against Bayern Munich and won on penalties.


 Elneny has been utilised as a defender in pre-season (Getty)
 (Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

Mohamad Elneny has been used as a central defender and has been impressing the boss as the Egyptian pushes for a regular place at Arsenal.

However, with a number of natural defenders at his disposal, it’ll be interesting to see how Wenger deploys his side over the course of the weekend.

Alexandre Lacazette

Arsenal’s £52m record signing Alexandre Lacazette will play his first game at the Emirates after his summer move from Lyon.

Lacazette has played in all four of Arsenal’s pre-season matches and has scored just one goal as he continues to settle into his new side.

Alexandre Lacazette is Arsneal's big-name summer signing (Getty)

Although it will be his first game there in Arsenal colours, Lacazette is no stranger to the Emirates Cup having played for Lyon in the 2010 tournament.

RB Leipzig

English football fans will get their first chance to look at RB Leipzig in-depth, who were the Leicester City-style surprise package in the Bundesliga last season. The club, founded in 2009, finished second in the league with a squad boasting an average age of just 23, but have been heavily criticised for being a marketing tool for Red Bull.

Leipzig finished second in the Bundesliga last season (Getty ) (Getty)

Next season RB Leipzig will join Europe’s elite in the Champions League, and this tournament will offer an insight into how the team will shape up ahead of a potential group stage draw against English opposition.

Sevilla's new manager

Eduardo Berizzo will take charge of his third game as Sevilla’s new manager after his fellow countryman Jorge Sampaoli left to manage Argentina.

Berizzo joined Sevilla from Celta Vigo and managed their Europa League campaign last season where they narrowly lost to Manchester United in the semi-final.

Given Sevilla’s impressive pedigree in winning three consecutive Europa League’s before United’s success last season, Berizzo certainly has a high billing to live up to.