Overview
Arsenal's ambition to win the historic quadruple once gained momentum, although it was always an extremely difficult task. However, recent results have dealt a heavy blow to their hopes.
After being defeated by Pep Guardiola's Man City in the Carabao Cup final, Mikel Arteta's team continued to not be able to take advantage in the defeat at St Mary's. Viktor Gyokeres' equalizing goal was not enough to prevent the North London team from suffering a second consecutive defeat.
However, the dream of winning a double title is still very vivid, as Arsenal is leading the Premier League table with a 9-point gap, despite playing one more match than Man City, while returning to the Champions League further strengthens confidence.
Arsenal is still the only team that has not lost in the most prestigious European arena this season, ending the group stage with a perfect record before overcoming Bayer Leverkusen after two legs in the round of 16.
The Gunners" got a late draw at BayArena, before goals from Eberechi Eze and Declan Rice helped them win 2-0 in the second leg at Emirates, thereby winning a ticket to the quarterfinals for the third consecutive time.
On the journey towards the semi-finals - something they have only done three times before - Gyokeres will aim for the first victory when facing his old team.
Joining Sporting in the summer of 2025, the Swedish striker has scored 97 goals in 102 matches for the Portuguese team, but will now stand on the opposite side of the battle line. The last time the two teams met, Arsenal won big 5-1 at Estadio Jose Alvalade in November 2024.
Although they have never beaten Arsenal in 5 official matches (3 draws, 2 losses), Sporting still has a basis for confidence, especially when their home form is very impressive with 17 consecutive victories.
The run included a 4-2 win over Santa Clara, with goals from Pedro Goncalves, Daniel Braganca, Francisco Trincao and Rafael Nel, helping them finish second in the Primeira Liga.
In the Champions League, Sporting also showed remarkable strength at Jose Alvalade's stadium, winning all 5 home matches this season. Including victories against Kairat Almaty, Marseille, Club Brugge and Paris Saint-Germain.
After a 0-3 defeat in the first leg against Bodo/Glimt in the round of 16, Rui Borges's team created an impressive comeback with a 5-0 victory in the second leg, thereby becoming the fifth team in Champions League history to reverse the situation and lose 3 goals in the knockout round.
Since then, Sporting has continued to maintain high form with three consecutive wins, scoring at least 4 goals per game. They will aim to extend this winning streak when welcoming Arsenal - a team that may be showing signs of instability in defense.
Personnel situation
Arsenal's defeat to Southampton also raised new concerns about the force, when center-back Gabriel Magalhaes was forced to leave the field. However, the Brazilian player has been confirmed eligible to play.
Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard have also been given the green light, but Bukayo Saka and Jurrien Timber are not yet ready to play.
Meanwhile, Eberechi Eze, Piero Hincapie and Mikel Merino will definitely be absent from the trip to Lisbon due to not recovering from injuries.
On the other side, Luis Suarez is maintaining impressive form. The Colombian player has scored in Sporting's last 3 home matches in the Champions League, with a total of four goals.
Expected lineup:
Sporting Lisbon: Silva, Vagiannidis, Diomande, Inacio, Mangas, Braganca, Morita, Catamo, Trincao, Goncalves, Suarez.
Arsenal: Raya, White, Gabriel, Saliba, Calafiori, Zubimendi, Rice, Odegaard, Martinelli, Gyokeres, Madueke.
The match between Sporting Lisbon and Arsenal takes place at 2:00 a.m. on April 8 (Vietnam time).
