Aug 3

Arsenal striker Robin van Persie revealed that he is ready to continue contract negotiations with the north London side after talks stalled because of the Dutchman’s participation in Euro2008 tournament.

In an interview with setantasports.com, the 24-year-old stated that his intention has always been to stay at the Emirates Stadium.

“I was [in contract talks] before the Euros but I stopped it because of the Euros and we can sit down together one of these days again,” Van Persie said.

“That is my intention always [to commit to the club]. I love this club, it is a great team and it is really nice to be in this team because everyone loves the game.

“Like me, I love to play lots of combination football, so I am in the right place, but you never know unfortunately.”

Earlier this afternoon, van Persie was in action against Real Madrid in the Emirates Cup working towards full match fitness. The Rotterdam-born forward showed his class with some neat footwork and one-touch passing and van Persie admitted his main aim for the new season is to stay injury-free throughout the new campaign and win some silverware - something many Gooners have been waiting for.

“I want to win everything, I want to be fit,” Van Persie added. “I want to be helpful to my team-mates and make a fantastic year, but you never know.”

Van Persie joined Arsenal four seasons ago for a fee believed to be in the range of £3 million after disciplinary problems forced him out of the Dutch giants.

Aug 3

The final Emirates cup game for 2008 saw the Gunners needing a 4 goal victory over Spanish champions Real Madrid to defend their crown.

Despite ultimately falling short of this aim, there was encouragement in the narrow victory that further hinted at a potential first-team for the coming season.

Arsenal Starting XI

Almunia

Sagna - Senderos - Gallas - Clichy

Walcott - Denilson - Diaby - Nasri

Adebayor - van Persie

Real Madrid Starting XI

Dudek

Salgado - Garcia - Heinze - Torres

Diarra

Callejon - Baptista - Guti

Raul - Robinho

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Aug 3

Arsenal’s Emirates Cup campaign comes to an end later this afternoon as they take on Spanish giants Real Madrid in the penultimate game of the tournament.

The Gunners’ slumped to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Juventus yesterday evening and Arsene Wenger’s side will be looking to impress in front of the watching 60,000 Gooners.

At the time of writing, if Arsenal manage to beat Madrid by 3 clear goals then they will retain the Emirates Cup - Hamburg are currently winning against Juventus by 1 goal to nil.

A strong line-up is expected to be put out by Wenger’s men as they look for a morale-boosting win after yesterday’s loss.

Team News - Arsenal

William Gallas, Bacary Sagna and Robin van Persie are all expected to start for Arsenal with the youngsters who started against Juve to be pencilled in for a second half run-out.

Midfield maestro’s Theo Walcott and Samir Nasri will definitely start after Gunners’ boss Wenger revealed he was looking to start both players against the reigning La Liga champions.

Kieran Gibbs’ spirited performance versus the ‘Old Lady’ certainly caught the eye and the youngster should claim a place on the Arsenal bench.

Arsenal Starting XI

Almunia

Sagna - Senderos - Gallas - Clichy

Walcott - Denilson - Diaby - Nasri

Adebayor - van Persie

Team News - Real Madrid

Bernd Schuster’s side welcome back a host of well-known names into Madrid’s starting XI as reported Chelsea target Robinho gets his chance to impress against the team he almost joined just three seasons ago.

Highly-rated defender Sergio Ramos will get a start while Ruud van Nistelrooy will be dropped to the bench.

Predicted Real Madrid XI

Casillas

Salgado - Ramos - Heinze - Torres

Sneijder - Guti - Diarra - Robben

Raul - Robinho

Match Prediction: Arsenal 1-1 Real Madrid

Leave your predictions and views in the comments section below.