Arsenal lifts Emirates Cup trophy

The Emirates Stadium came alive this weekend as it played host to the inaugural Emirates Cup, the ultimate pre-season competition for four of Europe’s top teams, broadcast to 200 countries. Arsenal, Paris St-Germain, Inter Milan and Valencia battled it out to become the first team to lift the Emirates Cup Trophy.

After two fantastic days of football, and four matches it was Arsenal who managed to clinch a win in the final match of the weekend, to give the home fans something to cheer about by being crowned winners of the Emirates Cup.

Gary Chapman, Emirates Airline President, Group Services, who presented the trophy said; “Emirates is delighted to have been involved in creating the inaugural Emirates Cup. The event has acted as a vital fixture in the pre season training of four of Europe’s top football teams, whilst at the same time giving fans the opportunity to watch matches they may not normally have access to.”

The weekend fixtures were opened by Inter Milan and Valencia, who after lining up on the pitch to greet each other - all in the name of fair play - turned their minds to getting their competition off to a good start. The match saw Valenica coming out victorious, as at the full time whistle the score was Valencia 2, Inter Milan 0.

For many of the 55,000 strong crowd, the match they had come to see on Saturday was the second of the day, where home team Arsenal took on Paris St-Germain. The crowd were certainly not disappointed as the Gunners managed to edge to victory by beating the French 2-1, with goals from Flamini and Bendtner.

Today the tournament stepped up a level and it was the turn of Valencia and Paris St Germain to open the proceedings. Valencia were already in a strong position having picked up 5 points from Saturday’s match, however they did not have it all their own way on the pitch. The match ended Valencia 0, Paris St-Germain 3 and left the tournament wide open.

The fourth and final match of the weekend saw Arsenal play Inter Milan. The capacity crowd certainly created a brilliant atmosphere and they were rewarded with some fantastic football. The final result was Arsenal 2, Inter Milan 1, which gave Arsenal a total of 5 points to add to their tally of 5 carried over from Saturday, and put them 3 points clear of Paris St-Germain.