Arsenal to play friendly in Japan in July

Tokyo: English Premier League club Arsenal will visit Japan this summer to play a friendly against Japanese side Nagoya Grampus.

Arsenal will meet Nagoya on July 22 at Toyota Stadium as part of the club's pre-season Asian tour. It will be the first time an Arsenal first team have played a match in Japan since May 1968, when the club played four matches during an end of season tour to the country.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who guided Nagoya for an 18-month period between 1995 and 1996, before becoming Arsenal manager, said "Japan and, of course, Nagoya are very special to me. I have many good memories from my time working in Japan."

The tour will be Arsenal's third successive pre-season trip to Asia following visits to China in 2011 and 2012.