Ryo Miyaichi says it was a big boost to get some playing time under his belt ahead of Monday's homecoming friendly in Nagoya.
The Japanese winger is back on familiar territory and could make an appearance against Nagoya Grampus at the Toyota Stadium after getting a 26-minute workout against the Vietnam national side in Hanoi on Wednesday.
"At Nagoya Grampus now, they have a very good calibre of players and I'm looking forward to playing against them on Monday"
Ryo
That was Ryo's first appearance since he had surgery to fix an ankle ligament injury he suffered while on loan at Wigan in March.
"I felt alright in Hanoi," the 20-year-old told Arsenal.com. "I haven't been playing for four months so it was good to play the last game against Vietnam.
"The weather was pretty hot and humid but I thought we played a good game and everybody had lots of fun."
All eyes have been on Ryo since he arrived in his homeland on Thursday morning and it's clear the Arsenal youngster has been waiting for this moment for some time.
"I've thought about it a lot," he admitted. "I've really been looking forward to coming back here since I heard about the tour last year.
"When we arrived at the airport, some of the fans were at the airport. I haven't met with family or friends yet but I went to a signing session and it was good to see Japanese people and Japanese fans.
"At Nagoya Grampus now, they have a very good calibre of players and I'm looking forward to playing against them on Monday. I will try to do my best and try to show them my speed, stamina and good play."
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