Vermaelen - Focus key to stopping Huntelaar

By Nick Teale
 
Thomas Vermaelen has warned his Arsenal team-mates they cannot lose concentration when defending against AC Milan's Klass-Jan Huntelaar.
 
Vermaelen played alongside the Dutch international striker for five years at Ajax and is well aware of the danger he will pose to the Gunners at this weekend's Emirates Cup.
 
Huntelaar became the first player to score at Emirates Stadium when he netted the opener in Dennis Bergkamp's testimonial four years ago. The striker also breached Arsenal's defence in the 2008 Amsterdam Tournament.

"Huntelaar is a very good striker," said Vermaelen. "He's very clever in the box and we'll have to concentrate for 90 minutes to keep him out.
 
"I'm really looking forward to seeing him again and hopefully playing against him. Milan will be a good challenge for us and will hopefully be a great pre-season match for the supporters.
 
"Arsenal against Celtic will also be a good challenge for us. I know Celtic are a very well supported team and there will hopefully be lots of supporters from both clubs in the stadium to make a great atmosphere.
 
"We obviously played against Celtic in last season's Champions League, so we know this will be a tough, very competitive pre-season match."

The defender missed out on playing in last year's competition and having sampled the atmosphere first hand last summer, can't wait for his Emirates Cup debut.
 
"Although I joined Arsenal before last year's Emirates Cup, I missed it because I had a slight injury," he explained.
 
"I remember watching the matches and seeing the full stadium on both days, so I'm really looking forward to being involved this year.
 
"It's a high quality pre-season competition and we are playing against very good teams, so it's a strong test for us before the season starts.
 
"It's tough, they're all good teams, and we play against AC Milan and Celtic, so we'll have two hard matches just before the Premier League starts. It's good preparation for the players and will also be great for the supporters, who will see two good matches each day.
 
"It is very important for our preparations because it's the first time we'll be playing against big teams since last season and you can see how far you are in pre-season."

Tickets for Day One of the Emirates Cup are now sold out. However, you can still purchase tickets for Day Two, which sees AC Milan take on Olympique Lyonnais before Arsenal face Celtic. Click here for more information.

[Tuesday, July 27, 2010]