Right now, Arsenal and the Premier League title quest is starting to feel like Manchester City and the Champions League pursuit, prior to the 2022-23 triumph. You’re just oh so close, over and over, but still fall just short. The Gunners, who have finished runners-up in the league the past three seasons, still hold a six point lead over Man City, but they have also played one more match than the team chasing them. And ahead of the two title contenders locking horns on Sunday, the North Londoners have a long list of injury concerns in Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka, Riccardo Calafiori, Jurrien Timber, Mikel Merino and Noni Madueke.
Arsenal at Manchester City FYIs
Kickoff: Sunday April 19, 4:30pm, Etihad Stadium, Manchester, UK
Team News: Arsenal Part I Arsenal Part 2 Manchester City
Google Result Probability: Arsenal FC 22% Manchester City 52% Draw 26%
PL Standing: Arsenal FC 1st, 70 pts Manchester City 2nd, 64 pts
PL Form: Arsenal FC WWWWL Manchester City WWDDW
The odds-makers still favor Arsenal to hoist the trophy in the end, but at the same time, City are favored in this match that needs no hyperbole on Sunday.
Arsenal Team News
We’ll cover Maduke and Odegaard in this edition, while getting you updated on Saka, Calafiori and Timber in the next edition.
Manager Mikel Arteta was vague and ambiguous, per usual, when providing an update on Madueke, who suffered a knee injury in the goalless draw with Sporting Lisbon last night.
“I don’t know, it was something in his knee, so we had to take him off, so I don’t know,” the Gunners head coach said in a minimalist, coy manner, as he usually does when it comes it injuries. It is hard to gauge the availability of Noni for Sunday, or what his return timeline might be.
With Odegaard, it is much more clear cut, but bad news. The team captain ruled himself out for awhile, as his knee problems unfortunately persist.
“I had to go off during the second half of that game in Portugal (at Sporting Lisbon in the UCL) last week, feeling my knee, which is why I missed the game at the weekend,” he said yesterday.
“Hopefully, it shouldn’t be too bad. I’m desperate to get back ASAP because this is the crucial period of the season.”
Maybe he’ll return later on this month, or perhaps in the earlier portion of next month. Meanwhile Mikel Merino is apparently ahead of schedule in his rehab, and he could actually return this season. But if he does, it will only be in the closing stages.
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.