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Arsenal vs Borussia Dortmund match preview and possible line-ups
09th August, 2026 11:36 AM
Arsenal will look to finish their Emirates Cup campaign on a winning note when they welcome Borussia Dortmund to the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon, August 9, 2026.
Although the competition is only a pre-season tournament, Mikel Arteta’s side have dominated the event in recent years and will be aiming to claim the trophy for a fifth consecutive edition. Dortmund, meanwhile, are hoping to become only the second Bundesliga club to lift the Emirates Cup after Hamburg achieved the feat in 2008.
Match preview
The Emirates Cup has become a familiar source of success for Arsenal during the pre-season period. The Gunners have won the tournament nine times, including victories in each of the previous four editions.
Arsenal began their 2025 campaign with a 3-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao, following a 2-0 win against Lyon in 2024. In 2023, they overcame Monaco on penalties before producing a dominant 6-0 victory against Sevilla in 2022.
Arteta has maintained a perfect record in his Emirates Cup matches, something that contrasts sharply with former Arsenal manager Unai Emery, whose only appearance in the competition ended in a defeat against Lyon in 2019.
However, Arsenal arrive at this weekend’s contest after suffering their first setback of pre-season. The Premier League champions were beaten 3-1 by Real Betis on Wednesday, with individual defensive errors contributing heavily to the result.
Before that defeat, Arsenal had enjoyed convincing three-goal victories over MK Dons in a behind-closed-doors fixture and Girona.
With the Community Shield against Manchester City scheduled for August 16, 2026, Sunday’s meeting with Dortmund provides Arsenal with one of their final opportunities to sharpen their preparations. They will also face Como at the Emirates next week before beginning the new campaign in earnest.
Borussia Dortmund have experienced a less consistent pre-season under Niko Kovac. Their four matches so far have produced two victories and two defeats.
Dortmund opened their preparations by recovering from behind to beat Rot-Weiss Oberhausen 3-1. They subsequently suffered a 2-1 loss to Fortuna Dusseldorf.
Their tour of Japan produced mixed results as well. Cerezo Osaka defeated them 1-0 before Dortmund responded with a narrow victory by the same scoreline against FC Tokyo, with Fabio Silva scoring the decisive goal.
Like Arsenal, Dortmund have one more friendly after this weekend. They will complete their pre-season programme against Roma on August 15, 2026, before turning their attention towards the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup clash with Bayern Munich later in the month.
Arsenal and Dortmund have developed a familiar rivalry through their Champions League meetings, particularly during the early 2010s. They have faced one another competitively eight times, with Arsenal winning the latest encounter 2-0 in 2014. Yaya Sanogo and Alexis Sanchez scored on that occasion.
Team news
Arsenal welcomed Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Magalhaes back into action during the defeat to Real Betis after the pair returned from Brazil’s World Cup campaign.
Both players were introduced and later withdrawn as part of a planned return-to-action programme. However, midfielder Louie Copley was forced off because of an injury and could now face an extended period on the sidelines.
Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard has also resumed training following his holiday and could feature for the first time this summer. The Norway international is expected to begin on the bench if selected.
Arsenal will not have Vinicius Junior available, with the Brazilian instead committing his future to Real Madrid after rejecting interest from the Gunners.
Dortmund have their own concerns in midfield. Carney Chukwuemeka was forced to leave the pitch after only 23 minutes against FC Tokyo because of a recurrence of a knee problem.
Although Kovac offered a positive assessment after the match, it remains unclear whether Chukwuemeka will recover in time to participate against Arsenal.
Emre Can and Nico Schlotterbeck are also expected to miss the contest as they continue their recoveries from long-term knee problems.
If Chukwuemeka is unavailable, 18-year-old Konstantinos Karetsas could be handed his Dortmund debut. The Greek midfielder joined from Genk earlier this week and had previously attracted interest from Arsenal.
Possible starting XI
Arsenal: Meslier; White, Mosquera, Gabriel, Hincapie; Vieira, Lewis-Skelly, Havertz; Dowman, Gyokeres, Martinelli.
Dortmund: Drewes; Reggiani, Anton, Ritter; Svensson, Bellingham, Nmecha, Beier; Silva, Karetsas; Guirassy.
