Arsenal Face Sporting Lisbon in Champions League Quarter-Finals Without Saka and Timber
Arsenal are preparing to face Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon today, Tuesday (20:00 GMT+1), in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals. The London club will be looking to overcome recent domestic disappointments in this encounter.
The Gunners enter this match after stumbling in the League Cup final and exiting the FA Cup at the quarter-final stage, making the continental competition a primary target to compensate for those results.
Regarding the squad, the team will be without winger Bukayo Saka and defender Jurrien Timber due to injury. However, Declan Rice and Gabriel Magalhães have been confirmed fit and ready to participate in the match.
These preparations come as Arsenal currently lead the English Premier League table by nine points over their closest rivals. They are also relying on their strong record in the European competition, where they have won all but one of their matches.
Meanwhile, Sporting Lisbon will be aiming to break their quarter-final curse, as the Portuguese club has never advanced beyond this stage in their history in the competition. They will need to deliver an exceptional performance against the English opponents, who are eager to go far in the tournament, especially given Arsenal's strong focus on securing available titles after their chances in other domestic competitions have diminished.
