Championship Sunday brings a London derby that is essentially dead rubber for both sides. Arsenal travels to Crystal Palace in a matchup of two sides preparing for European Cup Finals next week. Palace will play Rayo Vallecano for the UEFA Europa Conference League title a week from tonight while Arsenal will battle Paris Saint-Germain on May 30, for the big prize, Champions League supremacy. Arsenal legend Thierry Henry was on media conference call earlier today to talk about the UCL. However, before all that, we need to talk about the injury concerns for Championship Sunday: Jurrien Timber, David Raya, Mexance Lacroix, Chadi Riad and more!
Championship Sunday FYIs
London Derby: Arsenal at Crystal Palace
Kickoff: Sunday May 24, 4pm BST, Selhurst Park, London, UK
Thierry Henry on his nerves for the UCL Final: go here
Standings:
Arsenal- Premier League Champions, Preparing for UEFA Champions League Final versus PSG
Crystal Palace- Mid-table, Preparing for UEFA Champions League Final vs Rayo Vallecano
Team News for Both Sides
As you might have read or heard about…Arsenal ended their 22 year league title drought. It has been talked about quite a bit. With this goal already achieved, and Palace having nothing to play for domestically, both teams are likely to put a weakened side in this match.
Arsenal No. 1 David Raya explained on Monday what he’s been dealing with: “Yeah, I had a dead back, a dead glute and a dead shoulder, but I’ll be fine. Ice bath, I’m going straight away to the ice bath.”
Sounds like he’s fine, but he’ll likely be rested here anyway. Ben White, Mikel Merino and Jurrien Timber are all ruled out as well. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta provided an update on Timber yesterday:
“Jurrien has been dealing with this for quite some time. He is now training again to see if he can make the Champions League final and if he is available for the World Cup. It doesn’t look rosy at the moment.”
Moving on to Palace, Maxence Lacroix (knock), Chadi Riad (thigh cramping), Borna Sosa (unspecified minor issue) and Christopher Richards (ankle twist) could all be passed fit to feature in this one. But again, with one eye on the UECL Final coming up, will likely sit this one out.
Cheick Doucoure will likely miss out here while former Arsenal man Eddie Nketiah has been long ruled out for the season.
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.