Arsenal will aim to keep their Premier League and Champions League double hopes alive when they host Sporting CP in the second leg of their quarter-final on Wednesday. The Gunners hold a slender 1-0 aggregate lead courtesy of Kai Havertz's 91st-minute winner in Lisbon, with the victor set to face Barcelona or Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals.
Mikel Arteta's side stumbled in the league at the weekend, losing 2-1 to Bournemouth and allowing Manchester City to close the gap at the top. The Spaniard described the defeat as a "big punch in the face" but urged his players to focus on the European tie. "We need to learn, we need to be very critical to ourselves, and then pick ourselves up, because on Wednesday we have a big one coming up," he said.
Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has warned Arsenal that they cannot afford to sit back against Manchester City in the title race. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ferdinand said: "If you go there and sit back like Liverpool did at PSG the other day, it's slapsville. You're getting pumped. You can't do that." He pointed to Bournemouth's success as a blueprint Arteta has yet to solve.
Meanwhile, Manchester City defender Marc Guehi, a January signing from Crystal Palace, has warned that City are ready to "step up" and deny Arsenal the title. After lifting the Carabao Cup, Guehi said the trophy has given the squad belief. "In these moments it's about stepping up, the players stepping up, the team stepping up," he said. "The trophy definitely gave us a lot of confidence."
With a crucial week ahead, Arsenal must first navigate Sporting CP at the Emirates to keep their European dream alive, before attention turns to a potentially decisive league clash with City.
