At a Glance:
- Manchester City dropped two points away at Everton on Monday night in the Premier League.
- Arsenal are now on the bring of a historic Premier League and Champions League double.
- The Gunners have Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard fit and available for their game against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday night.
Arsenal are now on the precipice of a historic Premier League and Champions League double, with the next seven days set to define the campaign of Mikel Arteta’s team.
The Gunners face Atletico Madrid in the second leg of their European semi-final on Tuesday night. A win over the Spanish giants will see the North London club progress into their first final in this prodigious competition since 2006.
Meanwhile, Manchester City’s slip-up away at Everton on Monday night has moved Arsenal closer to the Premier League title. The Citizens may have salvaged a late point on Merseyside, but this result was still hugely damaging for Pep Guardiola’s side in the context of the title race.
With that said, here is the latest Arsenal news today, including updates on the title race, the Atletico Madrid tie, Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard.
Man City hand title advantage to Arsenal
City headed to Merseyside knowing that anything less than a victory would significantly shift the momentum in the title race. They buckled under this pressure, partaking in a frenetic encounter at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, which ended in Jeremy Doku heroically salvaging them a point.
The Belgian expertly curled the ball beyond Jordan Pickford and into the top corner in the dying embers, making it 3-3 and denying Everton a much-needed win in their own race for a European place. While the goal was met with raptures in the City end, there was a forlorn look on the faces of Guardiola’s players at full-time.
Arsenal now merely need to win their remaining three matches to be crowned champions. The Gunners face relegation-threatened West Ham United, already-relegated Burnley and a Crystal Palace side who will likely be looking ahead to a European final just days after their clash with the North Londoners.
Arsenal preparing for Atletico Madrid showdown
While the league may be Arteta’s greatest priority, the Gunners have a huge opportunity to reach a Champions League final when they entertain Atletico Madrid on Tuesday night.
Diego Simeone has moved Atletico from the hotel they used when they visited Arsenal back in October to a different hotel. The Argentine reportedly made this decision based on superstitions.
Meanwhile, Arsenal likely prepared for this semi-final by watching City slip up in their own team hotel last night. The Gunners squad should be buoyed by the outcome and fired up to light up the Emirates on Tuesday night.
Arteta has a number of crucial team selection decisions to make for the second leg. Myles Lewis-Skelly should be in contention in midfield after his exceptional display on Saturday, while the Spanish boss has to decide on whether to opt for a conservative full-back pairing in Cristhian Mosquera and Piero Hincapie, or a more adventurous one in Ben White and Riccardo Calafiori.
Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard in Arsenal’s squad for Atletico Madrid clash
Neither Kai Havertz nor Martin Odegaard were spotted in Arsenal training on Monday morning, raising alarm bells amongst Gunners supporters ahead of Tuesday’s game in N5. Both players are recovering from their latest injury setbacks, and their absences from London Colney hinted at their lack of availability for the Atleti encounter.
However, Arteta confirmed in his press conference on Monday evening that both players would be in the squad for the clash at the Emirates.
“They are available, they are in the squad, both of them,” he said.
“[Having them available is] Great, because we need options, we need the capacity to play different games tomorrow, whether it’s from the start or after. So it’s really, really good news for us to have them both back.”
