Arsenal have named their side for the Champions League quarter-final second leg against Sporting CP, with Declan Rice fit enough to start as Mikel Arteta’s team look to protect a 1-0 lead from Lisbon.
Arsenal have confirmed their starting line-up for Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final second leg against Sporting CP, with Mikel Arteta naming Declan Rice in midfield and Viktor Gyokeres leading the attack as the tie returns to the Emirates Stadium. Arsenal go into the night with a 1-0 aggregate advantage after Kai Havertz’s late winner in Lisbon last week.
David Raya starts in goal behind a back four of Cristhian Mosquera, William Saliba, Gabriel and Piero Hincapie. In midfield, Martin Zubimendi and Rice are joined by Eberechi Eze, while Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli support Gyokeres in the front three.
Arsenal XI vs Sporting CP: Raya; Mosquera, Saliba, Gabriel, Hincapie; Zubimendi, Rice, Eze; Madueke, Martinelli, Gyokeres.
Substitutes: Kepa, Setford, White, Salmon, Lewis-Skelly, Norgaard, Dudziak, Dowman, Trossard, Jesus, Havertz.
Arsenal’s selection means Rice has been passed fit enough to start after Arteta said on Tuesday that final decisions on a number of players would wait until matchday. His inclusion is one of the biggest calls in the side, while Eze returns for another major European game and Gyokeres again leads the line.
The second-leg context also matters. Arsenal know a draw would be enough to take them through after last week’s win in Portugal, but Sporting remain very much alive in the tie and one away goal would bring the aggregate score level. That keeps the pressure on Arteta’s side despite the advantage they earned in Lisbon.
The bench also gives Arsenal useful options if the game changes later in the evening. Havertz and Jesus are both available in attack, while White and Lewis-Skelly provide defensive cover. The names missing from the starting side are notable too, with Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka and Jurrien Timber not involved from the outset. Arsenal have still named an experienced side, though, for a match that could take them into the Champions League semi-finals once again.