Arsenal face Manchester City on Sunday in a game that could define this Premier League season, but there will be some notable absentees
Up to 10 players could miss Arsenal’s momentous Premier League clash with Manchester City through injury. The Gunners hold a six-point lead over City having played a game more.
The top two in the English top flight will go to war on Sunday afternoon at the Etihad Stadium. Arsenal will aim to stamp their authority on the title, while City will look to claw back more precious ground.
Should Pep Guardiola’s side win, they’ll be breathing down the necks of the visitors and be three points behind them with a game in hand. Mikel Arteta’s men could be nine points clear once again by full-time.
However, as the season reaches its climax, both sides have been hit with some injuries. football.london takes a look at the players who may be sidelined for Sunday’s spectacle.
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Arsenal
The most notable absentee for the visiting Gunners will be star winger Bukayo Saka. Arteta confirmed on Friday that he would not play in the match as he continues to recover from an Achilles injury.
Arteta said: “Bukayo is out. That is for sure. Hopefully, he recovers very soon because he is a tremendous player. He is starting to do some stuff, let’s see how quickly he can be with us.”
Saka is joined on the sidelines by Mikel Merino, who is also out of the City game with a bone stress fracture in his foot that required surgery. His return date is unknown as Arteta simply said when asked about his fitness: “Out again.”
This pair are the only two definite losses for Arsenal when it comes to players missing the match. But there are a handful of stars who face a race against time to be fit.
Noni Madueke was taken off during Arsenal’s midweek match against Sporting CP with an apparent knee injury but the manager says he could feature. He said: “He’s a player that pushes through pain so I’m hopeful that he can be available but we have to wait and see if he’s able to join [training] tomorrow.”
Martin Odegaard, Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber have all missed games in recent weeks but Arteta is optimistic all will be ready for the trip to Manchester.
He said: “Some players are quite close but the turnaround is short so we will try tomorrow to push everybody and if they are in good condition, they will be part of us and if not they won’t.”
Manchester City
City will be without Ruben Dias for Sunday’s game, as he is still sidelined with an ankle injury. Guardiola confirmed his absence on Friday.
John Stones will also miss the clash against Arsenal, as he was absent from City’s latest game with Chelsea due to a thigh issue. He could return for their next match against Burnley.
Guardiola will be without Josko Gvardiol after he broke his leg against Chelsea in January. But there is hope he may feature before the season ends.
Nico O’Reilly starred when these two teams met in the Carabao Cup final, grabbing both goals in a 2-0 win. Although O’Reilly missed City’s match against Chelsea, Guardiola is confident he could return to face the Gunners.
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