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.
JULIAN ALVAREZ TRANSFER TALK ERUPTS AS ARSENAL FACE ATLETICO MADRID IN EUROPEAN CLASH
Analysis: Behind Arsenal's ambition to sign Julian Alvarez. We explore the transfer bombshell dropped by Diego Simeone today.
Arsenal want to sign Atletico Madrid forward Julian Alvarez, or at least that’s what Diego Simeone is saying ahead of their Champions League semi-final.
Alvarez, who’s 26, has put away 20 goals in 52 matches for Atleti this season. He’s set to start against Arsenal in the first leg of their last-four clash at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on Wednesday.
Rumours have been swirling about Alvarez’s possible move to North London. When someone asked Simeone about Arsenal’s interest in the ex-Man City striker, he shrugged it off: “I’m not in Julian Alvarez’s head. I suppose it’s normal; he’s an extraordinary player. Sure, Arsenal are interested, but so are PSG, Barcelona, and other clubs. It’s nothing we’re worried about.”
Arsenal picked up Viktor Gyokeres last summer for £64 million. He’s scored 18 goals in his first season, but honestly, consistency has been an issue. Mikel Arteta dropped him for the big showdown at the Etihad earlier this month and then again at home against Newcastle.
Then, Kai Havertz picked up an injury in the first half of that Newcastle win and sat out of training at London Colney on Tuesday, so Gyokeres is set to start in Madrid.
Eberechi Eze had to leave the Newcastle game as well, but for Arteta, there was a boost: Eze rejoined his teammates for training.
Atleti, for their part, knocked out Tottenham in the round of 16 and then edged past Barcelona to make it to the semis. Still, Simeone’s men have lost six of their last nine matches.
Neither Arsenal nor Atletico has ever lifted the Champions League trophy. Simeone talked about the pressure: “I don’t really feel it. It’s just exciting to be this close; we’ve never done it before. It’s a special excitement. Leadership is everything in these games, and we’ll try to play the match on our own terms. We’re facing a great opponent, so it’ll be tough, but we’re up for it.”
Atleti captain Koke, whose contract is up at the end of the season, could be playing his last Champions League semi-final for the club. He compared the nerves before these games to those jitters before a first date. “Once the warm-up starts, it’s just football,” he said. “But we expect a very strong Arsenal team. It’s the Champions League semi-final, and that’s how we’re treating it.
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