Here is how football.london rated the Arsenal player performances against Borussia Dortmund in the Emirates Cup
Christos Tzolis was a standout for Arsenal in their pre-season clash with Borussia Dortmund
Christos Tzolis was a standout for Arsenal in their pre-season clash with Borussia Dortmund(Image: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
View Image
Arsenal endured another tough pre-season clash with a European heavyweight on Sunday afternoon as preparations for the new season continue. The Gunners were beaten in the Emirates Cup for the first time since 2019 as Borussia Dortmund came out 3-2 victors.
For the second pre-season game running, the Gunners went behind after Samuele Inacio beat the offside trap and ran in behind before slotting beyond Kepa Arrizabalaga. The German side were lucky, however, to keep ten men on the pitch when Martin Odegaard was denied a clear goal-scoring opportunity.
Yet Arsenal went two down when the 18-year-old wonderkid Konstantinos Karetsas curled a beautiful strike beyond the keeper.
Christos Tzolis made it four goal contributions in four games this summer, crossing for Ethan Nwaneri to smash into a huge gap. But the defensive worries continued as centre-half Joane Gadou was able to freely volley in a mishit shot after a corner fell kindly. Tzolis was involved again for the Gunners’ second, winning a penalty off Kaua Prates, and Viktor Gyokeres took the chance to score his first goal of the summer.
FOLLOW OUR ARSENAL FB PAGE! Latest Gunners news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page
Here is how football.london rated the player performances:
Kepa Arrizabalaga – Beaten comfortably by Inacio, with a good finish for the opener. Taken off at half-time on this occasion. 5
Ben White – Some better play from White, who got up and down the right flank relentlessly. His cross was key to the third goal and did well to reach the pass. 6
Cristhian Mosquera – For the opening goal, Inacio managed to get the jump on the Spaniard and ghosted in behind him. It’s leaving supporters with questions over whether a signing at the back must become a priority. 5
Gabriel – For the goals, there is a touch of slowness, which is natural in pre-season. Had a good headed chance fly over the crossbar too. 5
Riccardo Calafiori – The Dortmund attacks continued to fly down Arsenal’s left, and Calafiori’s positioning often left the Gunners exposed somewhat without the typical understanding of a Declan Rice or Martin Zubimendi. 5
Myles Lewis-Skelly – Simply playing in a position that leaves the midfield exposed. He still managed to play some nice passes, however. 6
Kai Havertz – Mixed moments in the first half, firstly playing a brilliant ball to Martin Odegaard through the middle, before then failing to find Gyokeres on his weaker foot with a cross. 6
Martin Odegaard – In a competitive game, Odegaard would have brought about a red card for Mane. Only got 30 minutes as planned, but he was excellent at finding the through passes and was involved in three good chances. 7
Max Dowman – Lovely drive into the box to set up Viktor Gyokeres for his shot that would his the woodwork. He and Tzolis were the biggest threats in the game. 7
Viktor Gyokeres – Had a couple of half-chances before the big chance came inside the box, where he would smash a strike onto the top of the crossbar. Overall, it was a disappointing open-play performance from the Swede, who garnered several exhausted gestures from Arteta on the sidelines…
He was able to salvage a better score, by scoring the penalty won by Tzolis. 6
Christos Tzolis – Really good performance again from the Greek winger, who played some nice combination passes while also defending solidly, too, which will please Arteta. His set-piece threat also looks very impressive.
His assist came after receiving the ball down the left, shimmying inside before firing a ball into the box for an easy finish. He also won his side a penalty, being brought down by Prates. 8
Substitutes:
Ethan Nwaneri – He definitely needed that goal, right place right time, solid finish. 7
Illan Meslier – Comes under a little scrutiny for not reacting to the cross for the third goal efficiently enough. 4
Piero Hincapié – Was playing very high up the pitch as Arsenal chased an equaliser, finding passes between the lines. 5
Marli Salmon – Excellent last-man challenge on Serhou Guirassy to prevent a very dangerous situation. 6
Gabriel Jesus – Came on very late and ran the ball off the field inside the opposition box. n/a
Gabriel Martinelli – Thought he might have scored at the end only to be ruled out for offside. n/a
Fabio Vieira – Came on too late to have much of a say on the game. n/a
Josh Ogunnaike – Came on too late to have much of a say on the game. n/a
Caedach O’Neill – Came on too late to have much of a say on the game. n/a
Theo Julienne - Came on too late to have much of a say on the game. n/a