Arsenal suffered their second consecutive defeat in the pre-season when they were defeated 3-2 by Borussia Dortmund in the Emirates Cup. This result shows that coach Mikel Arteta still has a lot of work to do, especially in defense, before entering the new season.
Bruno Guimaraes was introduced to Arsenal fans before the match, while Martin Odegaard returned after the 2026 World Cup break and Gabriel Magalhaes started. However, Arsenal quickly revealed gaps in defense when Samuele Inacio and Konstantinos Karetsas scored goals respectively to help Dortmund lead 2-0.
Ethan Nwaneri narrowed the gap for Arsenal, but Joanne Gadou quickly re-established a 2-goal lead for the away team from a corner kick situation. Viktor Gyokeres then scored from a penalty, but Arsenal could not find an equalizer and suffered a 2-3 defeat.
This is the second consecutive match Arsenal has conceded 3 goals, after a 1-3 defeat to Real Betis. Last season, the "Gunners" only conceded 3 goals in one match, but the problem has clearly appeared in the last 2 friendly matches.
Notably, Arteta has used almost the strongest defense currently. David Raya has not returned, while Gabriel Magalhaes pairs with Cristhian Mosquera in the center of the defense, while Riccardo Calafiori and Ben White take on two full-back positions. William Saliba is sidelined for a long time and Jurrien Timber is also absent for the next few weeks.
This raises the question of whether The Gunners need to continue to strengthen their defense before the season begins. The goals conceded against Dortmund show that Arteta's team is letting the opponent have too much space, especially in the area before the penalty area.
Besides the defense issue, Christos Tzolis continues to bring positive signals. In the context that Arsenal cannot recruit Vinicius Junior and wants to find more options for the attack, the Greek player is showing his ability to compete for a starting position.
Tzolis not only supported the defense but also created many dangerous situations on the left wing. He assisted Nwaneri with a sharp pass before bringing a penalty for Gyokeres to successfully convert.
This newcomer currently has an advantage in competing with Gabriel Martinelli for a position alongside Gyokeres and Bukayo Saka. However, he still has to compete with players like Declan Rice, Saka and Bruno Guimaraes in set pieces.
After the defeat to Dortmund, Arteta confirmed that Arsenal will have full force next week when players returning from the World Cup begin to return to training. Saka, Declan Rice, Mikel Merino and Martin Zubimendi will return, although they may not be used immediately in the match against Como.
Bruno Guimaraes may have to wait until the English Super Cup match with Manchester City to make his debut. In the immediate future, Arsenal needs to quickly fix the problems in defense if they do not want to enter the new season with too many question marks.
There were times when we didn't play well and were no longer like ourselves. Especially in set pieces, defense and handling times. Those are the aspects we usually do very well" - Arteta shared after the match.
