ALL EYES ON BERNABéU: UCL BLOCKBUSTER AS MADRID FACES DEFENSIVE MELTDOWN
Real Madrid faces Man City with an unprecedented eight-player injury crisis, including Militao and Carvajal. City, despite their own injury woes, aims to capitalise on a UCL top-eight finish.
Real Madrid could be without as many as eight of their key players when they play Manchester City in the Champions League at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday.
Madrid is currently fifth in the group, just two points ahead of Manchester City, who are ninth. This game has become a classic, especially during Pep Guardiola’s time at City.
Since 2020, City has often faced the Spanish team, who have won the Champions League more than any other team. They had mixed results, including their title win in 2023 when they beat Real Madrid in the semi-final and then Inter Milan in the final in Istanbul.
City is doing great in their domestic league, but a surprising 2-0 loss to Bayer Leverkusen in Europe, after Guardiola made ten changes to his starting lineup, makes the upcoming game against Real Madrid even more critical.
Last season, Madrid beat Manchester City home and away in the Round of 16, easily winning 6-2 on aggregate. Kylian Mbappe scored a hat-trick in the second leg in Spain.
City will miss Rodri, Mateo Kovacic, and John Stones due to injuries. They are not expected to play in Wednesday's game in Madrid. Guardiola will give an update on the team's fitness at a press conference on Tuesday.
Fitness is a big worry for Alonso and Madrid, who are missing many important players for one of the biggest games of the season. All eyes will be on the Santiago Bernabeu this week.
Eder Militao has a hamstring injury, Trent Alexander-Arnold is out until February 2026 with a thigh issue, and Dean Huijsen is doubtful because of a muscle injury.
Dani Carvajal recently had knee surgery and will be out for a while. David Alaba might also miss the game against Manchester City as he recovers from a muscle injury, which kept him out of the 2-0 loss to Celta Vigo on Sunday.
Ferland Mendy has only played once for Real Madrid this season due to ongoing fitness problems. It’s unclear when Alonso can count on the Frenchman, especially with a tough schedule ahead that could seriously affect their title hopes.
Kylian Mbappe is dealing with discomfort in his left leg. He missed training on Tuesday and is a major doubt for the game against Manchester City, according to Arancha Rodríguez.
Eduardo Camavinga also missed training because of an ankle injury, confirmed by Fabrice Hawkins. This means he will miss the game against City, who will want to use Madrid’s fitness issues to their advantage on Wednesday.
Manchester City can’t afford to lose two Champions League games in a row. Guardiola and his team will try to win, using their good Premier League form. Still, a draw against Real Madrid is never a bad result.
MARTIN ODEGAARD AND KAI HAVERTZ MISS FINAL TRAINING; CHAMPIONS LEAGUE HOPES FADING
Arsenal's Champions League hopes are in doubt as Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz miss final training ahead of the Atletico tie.
Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz didn’t show up for Arsenal’s open training on Monday, just a day before the crucial Champions League semi-final second leg against Atletico Madrid. Both missed Saturday’s comfortable 3-0 win over Fulham because of injuries: Odegaard with his knee and Havertz with a muscular problem.
Odegaard hurt his knee in last week’s draw with Atletico, while Havertz hasn’t played since picking up an issue against Newcastle. After beating Fulham, Mikel Arteta sounded confident they’d be ready for Atletico, but on Monday neither player was seen with the first team. That’s a big hint they won’t be involved at the Emirates.
Arteta is set to speak to the media soon, though don’t expect him to spill much; he’s known for keeping his cards close to his chest when it comes to team news.
There were a couple more missing faces at London Colney. Jurrien Timber (groin) and Mikel Merino (foot) were also absent. Timber hasn’t featured since before the international break, and it’s unclear when he’ll return, but Arsenal hope it’s before the end of the season. Merino’s been out nearly three months since foot surgery. He might not play again this month.
On the upside, Bukayo Saka was back in training after getting subbed at halftime against Fulham, where he started his first Premier League game since mid-March.
Now, Arsenal really have a headache. Odegaard, who scored 15 goals last season, just hasn’t looked the same. Staff are increasingly worried about him; he’s missed 25 games in all competitions this year, thanks to a pileup of injuries: two freak shoulder issues, two muscular injuries, and the recurring knee problem. When he’s fit, Odegaard can still make magic happen; just look at his four assists across six games in January, but right now, his body keeps letting him down.
Havertz’s story isn’t much brighter. He’s managed only 20 appearances this season, mostly because of a serious knee injury in the summer and more muscle problems afterward. He’s Arsenal’s top earner at £280,000 a week, while Odegaard sits fourth at £240,000. Having two high-paid players sidelined so often is not ideal, and Arsenal need answers.
To try to sort out this ongoing injury crisis, Arteta has reportedly brought in a trusted expert from the medical field to lead an investigation. Arsenal hope this move finally sheds some light on their troubled injury record.
DECLAN RICE ACCUSES REFEREE OF CRUMBLING UNDER PRESSURE IN MADRID PENALTY DRAMA
Arsenal head to the Emirates with a 1-1 draw, but Declan Rice is fuming over the officiating standards in the Champions League.
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Declan Rice didn’t hold back after Arsenal’s 1-1 draw in Madrid, backing Mikel Arteta’s outrage and insisting the team deserved a “clear” penalty. He even went so far as to say that Atlético Madrid’s fans pushed the referee, Danny Makkelie, into changing his mind.
Arteta was livid. Late in the first leg of the Champions League semifinal, Makkelie first pointed to the spot for Arsenal after Eberechi Eze went down. But surrounded by Diego Simeone’s wild sideline antics and the roar of 70,000 Atleti supporters, Makkelie stared at the replay 13 times, then flipped his call and waved play on.
Looking back on it, Rice couldn’t believe it. “It’s a clear penalty,” he said. “I don't know how that's not been given. I think the fans got to him and changed his mind. UEFA is just a different world. In both boxes, you have to be so careful because referees call everything.”
Arsenal ran into trouble with VAR twice. First, the ref ruled Ben White handled a Llorente volley, and Julián Álvarez buried the resulting penalty, cancelling out Viktor Gyökeres’ earlier spot-kick. Rice felt for White. Talking with Stan Sport, he said, “If that happens in the Premier League, it doesn’t get given. The ball’s hardly off the ground, and it’s not even on target. But in the Champions League, the refs make these snap calls and whistle for everything. It’s just more strict. But whatever, we move on. We want to beat them next week.”
Despite the drama, Arsenal is still in a solid spot. They’ll head back to London, hoping the home crowd can push them into their first Champions League final since 2006. Bukayo Saka, freshly back from an Achilles injury, is counting on it. “We’d have liked to win, but we’ll take the draw. It’s halftime, and we’re full of confidence going back to the Emirates,” he said. “I’m sure the atmosphere will be even bigger, and that will give us a real boost.”
Before that return leg, Arsenal face Fulham at home on Saturday. They could put more heat on Manchester City by stretching their Premier League lead, though City still has games in hand and plays Everton next. The race is on.
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