Arsenal and Liverpool Tumble in Pre-Season Matches

Two English Premier League giants, Arsenal and Liverpool, suffered defeats in their pre-season friendlies on Sunday, August 9, 2026.

Arsenal, the reigning 2025/26 Premier League champions, were defeated 2-3 by Borussia Dortmund at the Emirates Stadium. The Gunners found themselves trailing by three goals before Ethan Nwaneri and Viktor Gyokeres scored late in the game to narrow the deficit. Dortmund had taken an early lead through Samuele Inacio in the seventh minute, and Konstantinos Karetsas doubled their advantage before halftime. Despite a spirited second-half fightback and a penalty conversion by Gyokeres, Arsenal could not find an equalizer. However, Arsenal did win the subsequent penalty shootout 5-4 as part of the Emirates Cup.

Meanwhile, Liverpool experienced a similar fate at Anfield, losing 2-3 to AS Monaco. Liverpool had initially taken a two-goal lead, with Alexander Isak scoring in the 16th minute and Florian Wirtz adding another in the 29th. Monaco pulled one back before halftime via a penalty converted by Aleksandr Golovin after Virgil van Dijk conceded a foul. In the second half, Mika Biereth equalized for Monaco in the 56th minute, and Paris Brunner scored the winning goal in the 88th minute from a corner.

This loss marked Liverpool's second consecutive pre-season defeat, having previously lost 2-4 to Leeds United. The Reds have one more friendly match scheduled.