ARSENAL 1-3 REAL BETIS: The Gunners were convincingly beaten in Dublin, giving Mikel Arteta some cause for concern ahead of his team's season which starts in just 11 days' time

Lacklustre Arsenal fell to a comprehensive 3-1 defeat to Real Betis in their second pre-season friendly. The Gunners gave their fans in Dublin little to enjoy with an under-par display.

Mikel Arteta watched his side make a string of mistakes, showing the kind of rustiness that he'll hope will be gone in less than a fortnight when they start the 2026-27 season against Manchester City for the Community Shield. Arsenal found themsleves 2-0 down inside 26 minutes and Arteta was visibly frustrated on the touchline.

Piero Hincapie pulled one back but Betis didn't take long to restore their advantage before half-time. A raft of changes didn't make much difference in the second half and it was a match that will have fans talking for the wrong seasons.

Here are five talking points from the Aviva Stadium.

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1. Kepa's clangers

With Illan Meslier through the door, there's competition to be Arsenal's No.2 goalkeeper. But Kepa Arrizabalaga didn't help his case by making an error in the ninth minute.

A corner was floated in by Pablo Fornals and Kepa came steaming out looking to punch. But the Spaniard got it all wrong and completely missed the ball, giving Rodrigo Riquelme a tap-in.

Kepa's appeals for a foul fell on deaf ears and soon enough he made another error. His poor clearance surrendered possession to Betis and Nelson Deossa punished him with an unstoppable strike.

2. Still Set Piece FC

After finding themselves 2-0 down and playing poorly, Arsenal needed a response. That came in the form of - you guessed it - a corner.

New signing Christos Tzolis whipped the ball in and it evaded flapping Betis goalkeeper Alvaro Valles inside his own six-yard box. Standing a matter of inches from the line, Hincapie had a simple task to nod the ball in.

It was another well-worked routine from the Gunners. Tzolis' delivery dipped perfectly and Betis were bamboozled by the runners in yellow, who were sporting Arsenal's new third kit.

3. Guimaraes required

On the day Arsenal agreed a £75million deal to sign Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle, their second-choice midfield was exposed. Sloppy, lethargic, careless - all of those could be thrown at the trio of Ethan Nwaneri, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Kai Havertz.

Both Betis' second and third goals summed up their performances that will remind the Arsenal board just why they're buying Guimaraes. Deossa's strike may've been a screamer but he was afforded was too much time to pull the trigger.

And then for Fornals' goal which restored Betis' two-goal cushion, Havertz gave the ball away with a weak pass. It was all far too easy and so unlike Arsenal.

4. Injury blow for teenager

Arteta rung in the changes at half-time, making a total of seven substitutions. One who came on was Louie Copley, who captained Arsenal's under-21 side last season aged 19.

But sadly for the highly-rated midfielder, who was used at right-back, his night only last 10 minutes. Copley had landed awkwardly while chasing the ball and immediately looked in pain.

Arteta reluctantly subbed him, as the teenager had to be helped off the pitch as he struggled to put weight on his leg. Hopefully for Copley, it's nothing serious.

5. Arteta managing minutes

As the game petered out, albeit with Betis looking the more likely to score against a youth Arsenal XI, Arteta made two intriguing substitutions. Gabriel Magalhaes and Gabriel Martinelli had only entered the fray at half-time, but they came off 30 minutes later.

The two Brazilians had only reached the round of 16 at the World Cup, but it's clear that Arteta is being careful with his starters who played a mammoth amount of minutes last season. Both Gabriels should be involved on Saturday at home to Borussia Dortmund.