Slavia Praha will host 2025/26 UEFA Champions League finalist Arsenal at the Fortuna Arena on Wednesday evening with both teams coming into the contest in contrasting form and mood.
Slavia Praha’s Champions League campaign has been a major disappointment so far, with two defeats and a draw in their three opening games. Those results have left them reeling in 32nd in the 36-team league-phase table. A 1-0 loss to RC Lens was followed by another defeat to Sabah, before a gritty 2-2 draw at Fenerbahce in their most recent outing finally ended a European losing run.
Jindrich Trpisovsky’s men may have feared a hiding when Oguz Aydin and Mason Greenwood struck inside the opening 11 minutes at Fenerbahce, but Lukas Provod swiftly cut the deficit in half before Pavel Kacor’s 90th-minute leveller secured a point. That result, combined with a growing domestic resurgence, has given Slavia something to build on ahead of Arsenal’s visit.
Slavia Praha have now failed to win in 18 consecutive UEFA fixtures, but they have strung together a five-game unbeaten run in all tournaments and won back-to-back fixtures, most recently demolishing Jablonec 5-0 to maintain a seven-point lead at the top of the Czech First League.
However, the reigning national champions were swept aside 3-0 by Arsenal at home in the 2025/26 league phase and have failed to win any of their previous five head-to-heads against the Gunners. Arsenal, on the other hand, remain unbeaten in the 2026/27 Champions League league phase, having collected seven points from the first nine on offer.
After convincing wins over Napoli and LOSC Lille in their opening two games, Mikel Arteta’s side were given a huge task in their third clash, away at Bayern Munich. An end-to-end encounter at the Allianz Arena saw the two giants sharing the spoils.
An opener from Eberechi Eze was cancelled out by an Alphonso Davies leveller. Harry Kane then gave Bayern Munich the lead from the penalty spot, only for a late Declan Rice equaliser to ensure the game ended in a 2-2 draw. The four-goal stalemate marked just the second time Arsenal had scored first, fallen behind and still managed to avoid defeat in a European Cup/Champions League fixture, after an identical result against Bayern in 2024.
There has since been one setback, with the Carabao Cup exit at the hands of lower-league side Fleetwood Town. However, Arteta got the response he was hoping for on Sunday, overseeing a long-awaited Premier League victory at Anfield. An early Kai Havertz goal proved enough to secure the three points, as the Gunners put on a defensively sound performance, building towards the Champions League encounter.
Team News & Tactics
Slavia Praha
Slavia Praha have plenty of fitness concerns to take into account ahead of the Arsenal game on Wednesday. Those sitting out are as many as eight first-team stars, including experienced winger Ivan Schranz, who has been laid low by an illness for weeks. Star attacker Lukas Provod also missed the thrashing of Jablonec and is a doubt, as is defender Ange N’Guessan, who came off with an unspecified injury last time out.
From injuries to suspensions, 6ft 7in striker Tomas Chory has been banished by manager Trpisovsky after an inappropriate gesture to the referee during a recent Czech First League fixture against Hradec Kralove; he is not expected to play for the club again. These absences leave Trpisovsky with limited options in attack and defence alike.
As far as his preferred shape goes, the manager will start with a three-man backline including Tomas Holes, David Zima, and Stepan Chaloupek, while Tomas Vlcek and Oskar Kubiak will play as wing-backs in the lineup.
Michal Sadilek and David Moses will manage the midfield setup, while Mubarak Suleiman and Emmanuel Ayaosi will play in the advanced roles behind leading marksman Wiktor Nowak.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Domchak; Holes, Zima, Chaloupek; Vlcek, Sadilek, Moses, Kubiak; Suleiman, Ayaosi; Nowak
Arsenal
Christos Tzolis, Declan Rice, Noni Madueke, and Riccardo Calafiori all battled back from injury concerns to make the trip to Anfield. However, Bukayo Saka remains absent. Eberechi Eze is also a fresh concern after Mikel Arteta revealed that the Englishman is dealing with an unspecified fitness problem, although he could be back for the midweek trip to Prague.
Arteta has been boosted by the timely return of William Saliba to training, with suggestions that the defender will be involved in the midweek clash as well as that on the weekend. He is not expected to start just yet, although the manager is likely to make wholesale alterations at the back, with Cristhian Mosquera, Ben White, and Piero Hincapie to start.
Martin Zubimendi could also be afforded a start in midfield alongside Bruno Guimaraes, with Mikel Merino playing in the advanced role for Arsenal. Similarly, Arteta could hand Max Dowman a start on the right wing; he remains suspended for three games domestically but not in Europe. Eze should slot in on the left-hand side, while Viktor Gyokeres should replace Kai Havertz to lead the line for Arsenal against Slavia Praha.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Raya; Ben White, Mosquera, Hincapie, Lewis-Skelly; Zubimendi, Guimaraes; Dowman, Merino, Eze; Gyokeres
Key Stats
- Slavia Praha are winless in 18 consecutive UEFA fixtures.
- Slavia Praha have shipped seven goals in three Champions League matches this season.
- Arsenal are unbeaten in the 2026/27 UEFA Champions League league phase (W2 D1).
- Arsenal have conceded just two goals in three European matches, the joint-best defensive record alongside VfB Stuttgart and PSV Eindhoven.
Player to Watch
Max Dowman
A lot has been spoken about Dowman since his red card against Fleetwood Town for violent conduct, which earned him a three-game domestic ban. However, with some problems with the overall fitness of his wingers, Mikel Arteta could hand the teenager a start to reiterate his belief in the teenager’s talents.
A start in the Champions League should be a great opportunity for Dowman to continue his progress and showcase what he can do on the pitch. He will want to weed out the red card from his head with a stellar performance in Prague, as all eyes will be on the teenager and how he gives Arteta a different option from the wide attacking areas.
Prediction
Slavia Praha 0-3 Arsenal
Slavia Praha are struggling for relevance on the European front, and a fixture against the formidable Arsenal may not help their cause to build momentum. It is a situation of being against the odds, and that could reflect on the final scoreline, as the hosts are the clear underdogs in this clash.
Mikel Arteta will unlikely make the selection mistakes he did against Fleetwood Town a week ago, as he could set up strongly to see through a comfortable win. The Gunners are expected to beat Slavia Praha with a three-goal margin, to continue their impressive run in the Champions League.