Arsenal succumbed to a 2-0 defeat against Juventus at Emirates Stadium in their final warm-up match before Premier League action returns next weekend.
An own-goal from former Gunners skipper Granit Xhaka was enough to nudge the Italian giants into the lead in the first half. Academy graduate Eddie Nketiah saw two strikes ruled out by the officials as Mikel Arteta's side tried to fight their way back into the game.
A second own-goal, this time from Rob Holding in the final minutes of the match, put the result beyond the Gunners, though. With just over a week until the Premier League-leaders are back in domestic action against West Ham, Mirror Football takes a look at five talking points from Saturday night's friendly...
World Cup stars back
The likes of Xhaka, Aaron Ramsdale, Ben White and Thomas Partey have all been in Qatar at the World Cup in recent weeks, but that quintet are now firmly back in contention for Arsenal ahead of next week's big kick-off.
For the likes of Ramsdale and White, who didn't feature at all for England in Qatar, this match provided vital match minutes ahead of next week's London derby with the Hammers.
Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli are expected to link back up with the Gunners next week after their exploits with England and Brazil respectively.
After dominating possession for most of the match without overly troubling Juventus, Arsenal will need to be much sharper next week. Having the likes of Saka and Martinelli back involved in the coming days should stand them in good stead.
Nketiah's fine lines
With Gabriel Jesus set to be sidelined for up to three months following knee surgery, the onus will very much be on Nketiah to keep Arsenal's title dreams alive in the New Year.
The 23-year-old came in from the wilderness to earn a new contract in the final months of the 2021/22 campaign, but Nketiah has been playing second fiddle to Jesus ever since the former Manchester City man arrived in north London for big bucks.
Nketiah admitted earlier in the season that he was chomping at the bit to stake a claim - and Jesus' unfortunate injury will give him the chance to do that. Nketiah did, technically, underline his goalscoring ability against Juventus, but both were ruled out by referee David Cootes. He did, however, miss a close-range sitter after forcing a mistake out of the Juventus backline.
It remains to be seen if Arteta will stick with Nketiah or dip into the transfer market for a new No.9 - and Saturday's match may not sway the Spaniard either way.
Jesus in the stands
Speaking of Jesus, the Gunners striker was watching on from the stands at the Emirates just weeks after undergoing surgery.
Although the striker, who sustained an injury on international duty with Brazil at the World Cup, headed into the tournament on a barren run, the 25-year-old had still managed to quickly establish himself as a key member of the Gunners XI after starting the season in red-hot form.
Jesus made the effort to watch his teammates for their tune-up match with Juventus. Arsenal fans will be hoping that their star striker won't be stranded in the stands for too long.
Nelson injury blow
Reiss Nelson is set to join Jesus on the sidelines after the winger appeared to injure his hamstring in the match against Juventus.
The 23-year-old only lasted around 20 minutes before clutching at his thigh and appeared to be devastated as he was coming off the pitch.
After spending the majority of the season on the fringes of Arsenal's squad, Nelson made headlines when he came off the bench and bagged a brace in the Gunners' thumping win over Nottingham Forest in late October.
Given that the Gunners academy graduate is out of contract at the end of the season, he would have been aiming to continue to his renaissance in the New Year - but this injury has the scope to derail that.
Wonderkid back in the spotlight
15-year-old Ethan Nwaneri became the youngest-ever player to feature in a Premier League game in the Gunners' win over Brentford back in September - and he was given the opportunity to make an impression against Juventus in the closing stages.
The talented teenager was involved in the thick of the action; he was brought down almost immediately by Federico Gatti but was that didn't deter the youngster from trying to get on the ball.
It remains to be seen if Nwaneri will feature in the final weeks of the season, but it's clear the midfield prodigy is still firmly in the club's plans - and he was one of the few players to catch the eye after the break in his brief cameo role.
