Arsene Wenger says Arsenal will take the Barclays Asia Trophy “very seriously”.
The Gunners flew out to the Far East on Sunday to take on a Singapore Select XI, before facing either Everton or Stoke City.
“A preparation that is not serious does not give you any hope,” Wenger said. “It’s a very serious preparation and we’ll take this Barclays Asia Trophy very seriously.
“The players compete for places in the team at this stage of the season as well, so [fans] can be absolutely reassured on that front that it is a serious competition.
“I feel it is closer to the start of the Premier League [this season compared to previous tours] and it is also different in the fact that we stay in one place and do not have to move. That is a massive difference because before we had trips where we spent three or four nights out of seven on a plane.
“When you get to your last game you are not completely in a good state to guarantee a performance and I believe it’s the best possible position for us to combine serious training and serious competition.”
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