Dortmund beat Arsenal 3-2 at Emirates in Emirates Cup pre-season friendly
Borussia Dortmund defeated Arsenal 3-2 at the Emirates Stadium in the Emirates Cup pre-season friendly on August 9, 2026, handing Mikel Arteta’s side their second loss of the summer. The match took place as Arsenal’s penultimate pre-season outing and was watched by a packed Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal had announced new signing Bruno Guimarães to the crowd before kick-off; the Brazilian midfielder emerged from the tunnel to wave to supporters but did not play, with the possibility he could appear in the club’s final pre-season match. The fixture arrived after Arsenal’s defeat to Real Betis, offering a chance to respond that the hosts ultimately failed to take. The club has conceded six goals in their last three matches, a run the article described as a growing concern given Arsenal’s defensive reputation.
Dortmund opened the scoring in the seventh minute and doubled their advantage in the 29th minute, putting Arsenal on the back foot early. Ethan Nwaneri reduced the deficit in the second half for the hosts, but Dortmund restored a two-goal cushion with a strike in the 59th minute. Eleven minutes after that third Dortmund goal, Arsenal were awarded a penalty converted by striker Viktor Gyokeres to make the final score 3-2.
Samuele Inácio, Konstantinos Karetsas, and Joane Gadou were the three scorers credited with Dortmund’s goals in the victory. The piece noted Borussia Dortmund’s clinical finishing across those strikes as decisive in earning the win at the Emirates Cup.
The report described Dortmund as looking sharp in attack against Arsenal and cautioned that defensive consistency would be important for them ahead of a Supercup match against Bayern Munich. It singled out the young attackers for their finishing, stating that emerging talents such as Inácio, Karetsas and Gadou had shown quality in front of goal against top-tier opposition.
For Arsenal, the article argued Mikel Arteta must address squad integration, defensive depth and custodian sharpness as the team moves from rotation toward competitive fixtures. To cover long-term absences it specifically mentioned William Saliba’s back trouble and Jurriën Timber’s rehabilitation as issues to manage, and recommended establishing consistent central defensive pairings.
The piece also raised the question of readiness for young prospects, urging a decision on whether players such as Ethan Nwaneri and Max Dowman are prepared for sustained first-team roles or will serve as rotating options off the bench. That assessment was framed as part of the club’s transition from pre-season experimentation to the demands of the coming campaign.
Arsenal leave the Emirates Cup with their second pre-season defeat and one remaining warm-up match, in which Bruno Guimarães could make his first appearance for the club in this pre-season period.
