After comfortably dispatching Bayer Leverkusen in midweek, Arsenal are on a high as they march on in their pursuit of an unprecedented quadruple and as they prepare for Sunday’s Carabao Cup final against Manchester City.
The Gunners easily beat Leverkusen at the Emirates, with goals from Eberechi Eze and Declan Rice sealing their progression into the last eight of the Champions League. This came just days after a win over Everton extended their lead at the summit of the Premier League table to nine points; things are going well for Mikel Arteta’s side at the moment.
The same cannot be said of Arsenal’s north-west counterparts, who have hit a rut at the wrong time of the season, and thus, Arteta will be confident that his team can secure their first piece of silverware since 2020 on Sunday. The Citizens were beaten 5-1 over two legs against Real Madrid, whilst they’ve also drawn their last two league games, against Nottingham Forest and West Ham United, respectively.
On top of this, Guardiola will be without two crucial players for his team’s visit to north-west London.
Man City team news ahead of Arsenal clash
Like Arsenal, City have few injury issues to contend with at the moment. The Gunners may be without Jurrien Timber, while Martin Odegaard and Mikel Merino are both expected to play no role.
City’s absentee list isn’t any more substantial than this. While the likes of John Stones and Jeremy Doku have recently spent time on the sidelines and arguably haven’t rediscovered their peak physical level yet, both are available and raring to go.
The only player currently absent for Guardiola due to injury is Josko Gvardiol. The Croatian sustained a serious leg fracture back in early January in a game against Chelsea, and isn’t expected to return until late April at the earliest.
Meanwhile, Marc Guehi isn’t eligible to play in the Carabao Cup final as he’s cup-tied. The centre-back featured for Crystal Palace in earlier rounds of the competition, and actually scored against Arsenal for the Eagles in the quarter-final in December.
Antoine Semenyo, who played for Bournemouth in the second round, is eligible for this game because he signed for City before the semi-final stage commenced in January.
| Player | Reason for absence | Potential return date |
| Josko Gvardiol | Leg injury | 24/04/2026 |
| Marc Guehi | Cup-tied | 04/04/2026 |
Man City’s Predicted XI vs Arsenal
Guardiola has opted for some bizarre set-ups in recent weeks, prompting sceptics to criticise him for ‘overthinking’. Thus, it would be no surprise to see him refrain from galaxy braining on Sunday and instead reverting to something more conventional.
The charismatic coach has already confirmed that James Trafford will start over Gianluigi Donnarumma in between the sticks. In front of him, Abdukodir Khusanov will likely partner Ruben Dias at the heart of City’s defence, with Stones unlikely to earn a starting berth, even in Guehi and Gvardiol’s absence.
Khusanov being deployed at centre-back means Matheus Nunes will likely start at right-back, while Nico O’Reilly will be needed in midfield, opening the left-back spot up to Rayan Ait-Nouri.
O’Reilly will partner Rodri in what has become City’s first-choice midfield double pivot, while Bernardo Silva is likely to complete this midfield trio. Tijani Reijnders could find a way into the starting eleven, although Guardiola has generally favoured using the Dutchman off the bench.
Given the plethora of attacking options City have at their disposal, it’s difficult to predict what Guardiola might opt for in the forward areas. The best bet is that he selects Semenyo and Doku either side of Erling Haaland, although the likes of Rayan Cherki, Omar Marmoush and Savinho could certainly be granted a start.
Predicted Man City XI vs Arsenal: Trafford; Nunes, Khusanov, Dias, Ait-Nouri; Rodri, O’Reilly, Silva; Semenyo, Haaland, Doku.
