Alarm bells are ringing at Arsenal ahead of Tuesday night’s Champions League quarter-final first leg with Sporting Lisbon, as the Gunners look to arrest their recent slump in form.
After a 2-0 defeat to Manchester City in the EFL Cup Final before the international break, Arsenal suffered a shock 2-1 FA Cup quarter-final loss at Southampton on Saturday.
Those back-to-back setbacks have quickly put an end to any talk of a potential quadruple, leaving the Champions League and Premier League as Arsenal’s only routes to silverware this season.
Looking to bounce back from their sobering outing at St Mary’s, Mikel Arteta’s men will aim to draw first blood against Sporting Lisbon at the Estedio Jose Alvalade on Tuesday night.
As for the Portuguese giants, they come into this clash on the back of a 4-2 win over Santa Clara – a victory that moved them within five points of Porto at the top of the Primeira Liga, notably having played one game fewer.
Rui Borges’ side secured their spot in the last-eight after staging a dramatic comeback against Bodo/Glimt, overturning a 3-0 first-leg deficit with a 5-0 second-leg win via extra time.
How the bookies view it: Arsenal firm favourites
Despite losing each of their last two matches, Arsenal arrive in the Portuguese capital as heavy 8/11 favourites on bet365.
As for Sporting Lisbon, they are big outsiders at 15/4 on bet365, while the draw is trading at 29/10 with the same firm.
Head to head: History against the hosts
In five European meetings between the two, Arsenal have won twice and drawn three times, while Sporting are yet to secure a victory in normal time. The Gunners notably claimed a resounding 5‑1 away victory in Lisbon in November 2024.
Players to watch: Suarez to strike?
With a mightily impressive return of 33 goals and seven assists across 42 appearances across all competitions this season, Luis Suarez looks too big to ignore for a goal or an assist in Tuesday night’s first leg at 8/5 on bet365.
Meanwhile, Viktor Gyokeres will be eager to make an impact against his former employers, and he also appeals in the same market at even-money on bet365.
Predicted line-ups
Sporting will be without captain Morten Hjulmand for the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final against Arsenal due to suspension. Injuries kept Nuno Santos, Fotis Ioannidis, Geovany Quenda, and Luis Guilherme out of the weekend win over Santa Clara, though Quenda and Guilherme could feature against Arsenal on Tuesday.
Gabriel Magalhees’ injury around the 70th minute mark added to Arsenal’s misery on Saturday, putting the Brazilian in serious doubt for Tuesday night’s first-leg clash. The Gunners will again be without Eberechi Eze, Mikel Merino and Piero Hincapie, although Jurrien Timber may come back into contention.
Sporting: Silva; Vagiannidis, Diomande, Inacio, Mangas; Braganca, Morita; Catamo, Trincao, Goncalves; Suarez
Arsenal: Raya; Timber, Mosquera, Saliba, Calafiori; Zubimendi, Rice, Odegaard; Martinelli, Gyokeres, Saka
Anything else catch the eye?
Backing Sporting to score at least once, combined with the aforementioned Suarez to register two or more shots, creates an eye-catching 10/11 Bet Builder on bet365.
This combination would have landed in all five of Sporting Lisbon’s home Champions League matches this season, making it a value play at the odds on offer.
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