Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will be returning to the Emirates Stadium for the first time since leaving the club in the summer, as Liverpool travel to face Arsenal on Friday evening.

After a long saga, Chamberlain joined Liverpool on deadline day in the summer for a fee believed to be around £35m. Since then, he’s had a steady integration into the Liverpool team, and has recently started making more frequent appearances.

Arsenal welcome Liverpool to the Emirates Stadium on Friday night, when the Ox will be returning for the first time since his departure. Looking ahead to the game, he told the Liverpool Echo that it will be emotional.

“It will be a special occasion for me, full of emotion I’m sure,” he said. “We’re in good form and we’ll be going there full of confidence and looking for three points. I hope we can put together a good performance, fight all the way through the game and come out with the right result.”

In all likelihood, he’ll be greeted with plenty of boos as well as warm applause. Reaction to his departure was mixed, with fans feeling that Chamberlain had never reached his best for Arsenal, but also being frustrated that he couldn’t reach his full potential.

He spent six years at the club, scoring just 20 times in 198 appearances in all competitions. A need to play in midfield and a chance to work under a new manager motivated his desire to leave the club.

He’s made 15 league appearances for Liverpool this season, scoring just one goal. Arsenal need a result, given they could leapfrog the Reds in the table with a win. Memories of August’s 4-0 thrashing at Anfield could give them the motivation to deliver a positive result this time around.