Arsenal is starting to get more of their players back from post-World Cup holiday, and their squad is rounding more into shape for 2026-27. Club captain Martin Odegaard has rejoined the squad, following his break after helping lead Norway to the quarterfinals at the tournament. He’ll feature against Borussia Dortmund on Sunday, albeit is lesser role off the bench.
“Martin [Odegaard] will be back and then the English and Spanish internationals will be back soon as well,” said Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta. “So, we’re going to start to have more and more players at the moment, we still miss a lot of them.”
Emirates Cup FYIs
Arsenal FC vs Borussia Dortmund
Kickoff: 2pm BST
Venue: Emirates Stadium, London, UK
Starting XI Predictions for Both Sides: go here
Arsenal Team News
The aforementioned English players who are still absent are Eberechi Eze, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka. Meanwhile the Spanish contingent consists of Mikel Merino, Martin Zubimendi and David Raya.
Also, Arsenal have suffered a new injury concern, in the form of youngster Louie Copley, who had to helped off the pitch in midweek. Copley suffered a knee injury in the friendly against Real Betis, and Arteta’s update was bleak.
“It doesn’t look good,” Arteta said.
“The mechanism is not too positive, the symptoms that he already has either. Let’s hope that tomorrow the news is better than we hope.”
Meanwhile Jurrien Timber and William Saliba remain sidelined as longer-term injury concerns. Shifting gears to Dortmund, they also saw one of their midfielders suffer a knee injury in midweek.
Carney Chukwuemeka saw his outing against FC Tokyo cut short, due to a knee problem flaring up.
Emre Can and Nico Schlotterbeck remain sidelined as longer-term injury absentees.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, Ratings and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.