Alexis Sanchez, Falcao, Rodrigo and Nicolas Gaitan... the star men to dazzle for Arsenal and Co at the Emirates Cup

  • The Emirates Cup gets underway on Saturday in what could see Alexis Sanchez make his Arsenal debut
  • The two-day four-team tournament also features Monaco, Valencia and Benfica
  • Monaco's Falcao, Valencia's Rodrigo and Benfica's Nicolas Gaitan are all expected to shine for their respective sides

EMIRATES CUP FIXTURES

Saturday 2 August: Valencia v Monaco - 2pm

Saturday 2 August: Arsenal v Benfica - 4.20pm

Sunday 3 August: Benfica v Valencia - 2pm

Sunday 3 August: Arsenal v Monaco - 4.20pm

(All games are live on BT Sport 1)

The Emirates Cup gets underway this weekend with Arsenal fans excited at the opportunity to see summer signing Alexis Sanchez in action for the first time.


The Chile international isn't the only star attraction at the four-team tournament though that also features Monaco, Benfica and Valencia.

Sportsmail previews the star men to watch for each team over the weekend.

ARSENAL

Star man: Alexis Sanchez

Arsene Wenger finds himself in an unusual position of having concluded his major business early in the summer, with this tournament offering an early glimpse of what kind of potential he has amassed.

The hope is that Sanchez will feature, with the broader wish among Arsenal’s support that he is, in fact, the missing piece of the puzzle. Wenger was positively beaming this week when he spoke about the qualities brought to the party by the £30million forward, usurped at Barcelona by Luis Suarez but welcomed like a kind of messiah at the Emirates.

VIDEO Scroll down to watch Falcao nearly take his friend's head off playing baseball

Exciting signing: Alexis Sanchez is set to make his Arsenal debut at the weekend after his £30million move

Exciting signing: Alexis Sanchez is set to make his Arsenal debut at the weekend after his £30million move

‘I love pace and when we lost Theo Walcott (to injury) we suffered a little bit on that front,’ said Wenger. ‘So I took him because he is a player who has the qualities of Walcott, he goes behind the defenders off the ball.

‘And with the quality of his runs he can be very important for us. I think he will give us an extra dimension, in terms of quality and threat. And I hope I’m right.’

Calum Chambers, who cost £12million from Southampton, is likely to battle with new arrival Mathieu Debuchy, a £10m signing from Newcastle, for the right-back slot, but David Ospina, so impressive at the World Cup with Columbia, has a thigh injury.

Up for the challenge: Calum Chambers is set to rival Mathieu Debuchy for the right-back berth at Arsenal

Up for the challenge: Calum Chambers is set to rival Mathieu Debuchy for the right-back berth at Arsenal

MONACO

Star man: Radamel Falcao

With James Rodriguez sold to Real Madrid for north of £70m, Monaco lose a little bit of their allure. But in Joao Moutinho they have an excellent midfielder worth watching and, besides, they also have Radamel Falcao.

The £53m Colombian is a magnificent talent and one who was so cruelly denied a place in the World Cup but a serious knee injury suffered in January.

Predator: Falcao is one of the world's deadliest strikers and is a target for Real Madrid

Predator: Falcao is one of the world's deadliest strikers and is a target for Real Madrid

The 28-year-old now appears likely to appear for Monaco against Valencia, for his first appearance in six months. Real Madrid will likely be watching as they plan a move to sign Falcao.

Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim told L'Equipe: ‘I think he will be able to start playing again at the Emirates Cup. He is now in the final phase of his recuperation.’

Another familiar face will be Dimitar Berbatov.

Pastures new: Monaco will be without James Rodriguez who completed a move to Real in July

Pastures new: Monaco will be without James Rodriguez who completed a move to Real in July

VALENCIA

Star man: Rodrigo

This is far from a vintage Valencia side, arriving in London on the back of a woeful season in which they finished eighth in La Liga and were trounced 3-0 at home by Swansea in the Europa League. Financially they found themselves in a bit of a mess.

To London and Valencia travel with a new manager, Nuno Santo, a former goalkeeper at Porto under Jose Mourinho, and only modest hopes.

Out to impress: Valencia's Rodrigo (left) will face parent club Benfica on Sunday having moved on loan

Out to impress: Valencia's Rodrigo (left) will face parent club Benfica on Sunday having moved on loan

They have a genuine talent in the form of Rodrigo, who had an unremarkable loan spell at Bolton in 2010-11 but is a fine striker. A product of Real Madrid’s academy, the former Spain Under 21 player is on loan in Spain from Benfica.

Valencia’s most recent pre-season results have a defeat on penalties to Peruvian side Alianza de Lima and a 3-1 loss to Nurnberg of the German second division.

Star pedigree: Rodrigo (right) is a product of Real's academy and is a former Spain Under 21 international

Star pedigree: Rodrigo (right) is a product of Real's academy and is a former Spain Under 21 international

BENFICA

Star man: Nicolas Gaitan

The form team of the competition come in on the back of an excellent season. They won a domestic treble and reached the final of the Europa League, where they lost on penalties against Seville.

Jorge Jesus has built a solid side, with possibly the strongest point being Nicolas Gaitan on the left wing. Against Arsenal, he will likely come up against Calum Chambers or Mathieu Debuchy, both new signings at right back, and it will be a match-up worth watching.

Baller: Nicolas Gaitan played a key role on the left wing as Benfica won a domestic treble last season

Baller: Nicolas Gaitan played a key role on the left wing as Benfica won a domestic treble last season

Gaitan didn’t make Argentina’s World Cup squad, but the 26-year-old was arguably Benfica’s finest player last season, lighting up the Taca de Portugal final and also drawing significant attention from Liverpool.

Brazilian Lima has also proven himself as a prolific forward, while Oscar Cardozo, at 31, is still extremely effective despite a relatively tame 2013-14 season. Benfica drew huge strength from their defence last season with Luisao, their 33-year-old, producing one of his finest campaigns.

Rock solid: Captain Luisao enjoyed a stellar season at Benfica leading the Portuguese champions last term

Rock solid: Captain Luisao enjoyed a stellar season at Benfica leading the Portuguese champions last term

  

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