ARSENAL have beaten Queens Park Rangers 3-2 in a behind-closed-doors friendly at London Colney.
Mikel Arteta opted to start a strong line-up for the derby clash from the players that were not called up for international duty.
According to Football.London, Alexandre Lacazette was tasked with leading the line for the Gunners in the absence of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Meanwhile Gabriel Martinelli was also named in the starting XI amid speculation he could depart the Emirates in 2022.
The Brazilian forward, 20, hasn’t featured in any of the last five Premier League games, leading to reports he could force through an exit if his situation doesn’t change.
It has also been said that Ainsley Maitland-Niles was included in the starting XI.
Maitland-Niles has featured in all of Arsenal’s last seven matches in all competitions after failing to secure a move away in the summer.
Arteta is also claimed to have started his preferred centre-back pairing of Gabriel and Ben White.
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Meanwhile academy centre-back Taylor Foran, 17, also featured in the clash against the Hoops.
The teenager took to his Instagram story to upload an Arsenal shirt with his name and No27 on the back after being called up to the matchday squad.
No goalscorers have yet been revealed for either team.
Arsenal face Crystal Palace in the top-flight next following their goalless draw away at Brighton.
And Arteta conceded that his team didn’t deserve to beat the Seagulls after being outplayed by Graham Potter’s side.
He said: “I think it was a point gained because I don’t think we deserved anything more than that.
“We did deserve the point because we defended really well the last 15 or 20 metres of our pitch.
“But in the end we never felt in control of the game and we struggled to break their press and get a good sequence of passes and impose ourselves in the final third and they made it really tough for us.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
