diff --git a/packages/compiler/test/render3/mock_compile.ts b/packages/compiler/test/render3/mock_compile.ts
index 68fbbcd6cb..1a4203a412 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/test/render3/mock_compile.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/test/render3/mock_compile.ts
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ import {MockAotCompilerHost, MockCompilerHost, MockData, MockDirectory, arrayToM
 
 const IDENTIFIER = /[A-Za-z_$ɵ][A-Za-z0-9_$]*/;
 const OPERATOR =
-    /!|%|\*|\/|\^|&{1,2}|\|{1,2}|\(|\)|\{|\}|\[|\]|:|;|<=?|>=?|={1,3}|!={1,2}|=>|\+{1,2}|-{1,2}|@|,|\.|\.\.\./;
+    /!|%|\*|\/|\^|&&?|\|\|?|\(|\)|\{|\}|\[|\]|:|;|<=?|>=?|={1,3}|!==?|=>|\+\+?|--?|@|,|\.|\.\.\./;
 const STRING = /'[^']*'|"[^"]*"|`[\s\S]*?`/;
 const NUMBER = /\d+/;
 
@@ -37,8 +37,8 @@ const TOKEN = new RegExp(
 type Piece = string | RegExp;
 
 const SKIP = /(?:.|\n|\r)*/;
-const MATCHING_IDENT = /^\$.*\$$/;
 
+const ERROR_CONTEXT_WIDTH = 30;
 // Transform the expected output to set of tokens
 function tokenize(text: string): Piece[] {
   TOKEN.lastIndex = 0;
@@ -57,23 +57,26 @@ function tokenize(text: string): Piece[] {
     }
   }
 
-  if (TOKEN.lastIndex !== 0) {
+  if (pieces.length === 0 || TOKEN.lastIndex !== 0) {
     const from = TOKEN.lastIndex;
-    const to = from + 30;
-    throw Error(`Invalid test, no token found for '${text.substr(from, to)}...'`)
+    const to = from + ERROR_CONTEXT_WIDTH;
+    throw Error(`Invalid test, no token found for '${text.substr(from, to)}...'`);
   }
 
   return pieces;
 }
 
-export function expectEmit(source: string, expected: string, description: string) {
+export function expectEmit(
+    source: string, expected: string, description: string,
+    assertIdentifiers?: {[name: string]: RegExp}) {
   const pieces = tokenize(expected);
-  const expr = r(pieces);
-  if (!expr.test(source)) {
+  const {regexp, groups} = buildMatcher(pieces);
+  const matches = source.match(regexp);
+  if (matches === null) {
     let last: number = 0;
     for (let i = 1; i < pieces.length; i++) {
-      const t = r(pieces.slice(0, i));
-      const m = source.match(t);
+      const {regexp} = buildMatcher(pieces.slice(0, i));
+      const m = source.match(regexp);
       const expectedPiece = pieces[i - 1] == IDENTIFIER ? '<IDENT>' : pieces[i - 1];
       if (!m) {
         fail(
@@ -85,11 +88,42 @@ export function expectEmit(source: string, expected: string, description: string
     }
     fail(
         `Test helper failure: Expected expression failed but the reporting logic could not find where it failed in: ${source}`);
+  } else {
+    if (assertIdentifiers) {
+      // It might be possible to add the constraints in the original regexp (see `buildMatcher`)
+      // by transforming the assertion regexps when using anchoring, grouping, back references,
+      // flags, ...
+      //
+      // Checking identifiers after they have matched allows for a simple and flexible
+      // implementation.
+      // The overall performance are not impacted when `assertIdentifiers` is empty.
+      const ids = Object.keys(assertIdentifiers);
+      for (let i = 0; i < ids.length; i++) {
+        const id = ids[i];
+        if (groups.has(id)) {
+          const name = matches[groups.get(id) as number];
+          const regexp = assertIdentifiers[id];
+          if (!regexp.test(name)) {
+            throw Error(
+                `${description}: The matching identifier "${id}" is "${name}" which doesn't match ${regexp}`);
+          }
+        }
+      }
+    }
   }
 }
 
 const IDENT_LIKE = /^[a-z][A-Z]/;
-function r(pieces: (string | RegExp)[]): RegExp {
+const MATCHING_IDENT = /^\$.*\$$/;
+
+/*
+ * Builds a regexp that matches the given `pieces`
+ *
+ * It returns:
+ * - the `regexp` to be used to match the generated code,
+ * - the `groups` which maps `$...$` identifier to their position in the regexp matches.
+ */
+function buildMatcher(pieces: (string | RegExp)[]): {regexp: RegExp, groups: Map<string, number>} {
   const results: string[] = [];
   let first = true;
   let group = 0;
@@ -116,7 +150,10 @@ function r(pieces: (string | RegExp)[]): RegExp {
       results.push('(?:' + piece.source + ')');
     }
   }
-  return new RegExp(results.join(''));
+  return {
+    regexp: new RegExp(results.join('')),
+    groups,
+  };
 }
 
 function doCompile(
@@ -164,8 +201,6 @@ function doCompile(
       new DirectiveResolver(staticReflector), new PipeResolver(staticReflector), summaryResolver,
       elementSchemaRegistry, normalizer, console, symbolCache, staticReflector, errorCollector);
 
-
-
   // Create the TypeScript program
   const sourceFiles = program.getSourceFiles().map(sf => sf.fileName);
 
diff --git a/packages/compiler/test/render3/mock_compiler_spec.ts b/packages/compiler/test/render3/mock_compiler_spec.ts
index 4c7e44145c..e3bb9bea14 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/test/render3/mock_compiler_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/test/render3/mock_compiler_spec.ts
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ describe('mock_compiler', () => {
           'hello.module.ts': `
             import {NgModule} from '@angular/core';
             import {HelloComponent} from './hello.component';
-            
+
             @NgModule({declarations: [HelloComponent]})
             export class HelloModule {}
           `
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ describe('mock_compiler', () => {
           'hello.module.ts': `
             import {NgModule} from '@angular/core';
             import {HelloComponent} from './hello.component';
-            
+
             @NgModule({declarations: [HelloComponent]})
             export class HelloModule {}
           `
@@ -101,7 +101,7 @@ describe('mock_compiler', () => {
         'hello.module.ts': `
           import {NgModule} from '@angular/core';
           import {HelloComponent} from './hello.component';
-          
+
           @NgModule({declarations: [HelloComponent]})
           export class HelloModule {}
         `
@@ -131,7 +131,7 @@ describe('mock_compiler', () => {
         'hello.module.ts': `
           import {NgModule} from '@angular/core';
           import {HelloComponent} from './hello.component';
-          
+
           @NgModule({declarations: [HelloComponent]})
           export class HelloModule {}
         `
@@ -151,4 +151,38 @@ describe('mock_compiler', () => {
         result.source, '$ctx$.$name$ … $ctx$.$name$.length',
         'could not find correct length access');
   });
+
+  it('should be able to enforce that identifiers match a regexp', () => {
+    const files = {
+      app: {
+        'hello.component.ts': `
+          import {Component, Input} from '@angular/core';
+
+          @Component({template: 'Hello {{name}}! Your name as {{name.length}} characters'})
+          export class HelloComponent {
+            @Input() name: string = 'world';
+          }
+        `,
+        'hello.module.ts': `
+          import {NgModule} from '@angular/core';
+          import {HelloComponent} from './hello.component';
+
+          @NgModule({declarations: [HelloComponent]})
+          export class HelloModule {}
+        `
+      }
+    };
+
+    const result = compile(files, angularFiles);
+
+    // Pass: `$n$` ends with `ME` in the generated code
+    expectEmit(result.source, '$ctx$.$n$ … $ctx$.$n$.length', 'Match names', {'$n$': /ME$/i});
+
+    // Fail: `$n$` does not match `/(not)_(\1)/` in the generated code
+    expect(() => {
+      expectEmit(
+          result.source, '$ctx$.$n$ … $ctx$.$n$.length', 'Match names', {'$n$': /(not)_(\1)/});
+    }).toThrowError(/"\$n\$" is "name" which doesn't match \/\(not\)_\(\\1\)\//);
+  });
+
 });
\ No newline at end of file