Arsenal were beaten 3-2 by Borussia Dortmund in their pre-season friendly, with Max Dowman unable to hide his frustration after Viktor Gyokeres spurned a golden chance
LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 09: Max Dowman of Arsenal during the during the pre-season friendly match between Arsenal FC and Borussia Dortmund at Emirates Stadium on August 09, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Max Dowman was frustrated by Viktor Gyokeres' miss(Image: Justin Setterfield, Getty Images)
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Arsenal wonderkid Max Dowman couldn't believe his eyes against Borussia Dortmund. The teenager superstar's disappointment was clear after he watched Viktor Gyokeres blaze over the bar at the Emirates.
Dowman had driven down the byline before cutting the ball back for the Swede on a plate to capitalise on. The youngster could only watch on as his team-mate squandered the opportunity, and he could only throw his arms up in exasperation.
The Gunners were beaten 3-2 by the German outfit in front of their home supporters as Mikel Arteta's preparation continued ahead of their Premier League title defence. Dortmund surged into a two-goal lead through Samuele Inacio and Konstantino Karetsas before Ethan Nwaneri halved the deficit.
Joane Gadou restored the visitors' two-goal advantage just four minutes later. Gyokeres converted from the penalty spot to ensure a tense finale.
But his effort sailing over the crossbar may linger in the memory of many following the Gunners' defeat. The 28-year-old will have to provide some more clinical finishing in the coming months to convince his naysayers.
Gyokeres faced plenty of scrutiny during his maiden campaign. He registered 21 goals for the Gunners, yet doubts persist over whether the former Sporting Lisbon striker is the forward Arteta has been searching for.
During the crucial stages of last season, Arteta chose to deploy Kai Havertz as Arsenal's focal point, selecting the German ahead of Gyokeres for the Champions League final.
Max Dowman
Max Downman couldn't believe it
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Arsenal have seen ambitious plans to add to their firepower this summer. The north London side had been strongly linked with a move for Vinicius Junior earlier this summer, but the Brazilian has opted to stay at Real Madrid.
Arteta has confirmed that Gyokeres will remain at the club for the forthcoming season, despite earlier speculation he could be used to land Julian Alvarez from Atletico Madrid. Nevertheless, the north Londoners could yet pursue a headline-grabbing deal in the final third before the transfer window shuts.
"It has to be the right player in the market to make us much better. We are very much looking forward to that," Arsenal's head coach said after their defeat to Dortmund:
The Arsenal manager, however, is confident the squad will hit their stride despite a number of underwhelming pre-season outings. "I think it has to, it has to hurt when you lose a football match, it has to hurt when it is a friendly match, a test or whatever you want to call it," he said.
"But yes, we know where we are. We know that we are missing still a lot of players and some players that haven't had enough training. And yes, sometimes it's good."
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