Arsenal
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has doubled down on his claim that his side were the best in the Champions League this season, despite losing to Paris St Germain in the semi-finals, but recognised on Friday they had taken a step back domestically.
Arsenal players were left in tears after Wednesday's 2-1 semi-final loss at Paris St Germain knocked them out of the Champions League, manager Mikel Arteta said in a post-match press conference.
Arsenal kept Liverpool's Premier League title-winning champagne on ice, but only just, as they were twice pegged back at home by Crystal Palace with Jean-Philippe Mateta scoring a superb equaliser in a 2-2 draw on Wednesday.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said his side’s big win over Real Madrid, which sent them through to their first Champions League semi-final since 2009, can boost the club’s appeal to top targets in the close season transfer window.
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti, reeling from a 3-0 mauling at Arsenal in the Champions League quarter-final first leg, must rally his players for Sunday's trip to Alaves where they will aim to end a three-game winless run in all competitions.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said on Friday that the injury to centre back Gabriel Magalhaes was hard to digest after the Brazilian became the third player to require surgery for a hamstring injury at the North London club this season.
Manchester City are not used to playing a supporting role in a Premier League title drama but Sunday's home game against leaders Liverpool at least offers Pep Guardiola's inconsistent side the chance to grab centre stage again.
Arsenal forward Kai Havertz will miss the rest of the season and undergo surgery after suffering a hamstring injury in training, the Premier League club said on Thursday.
Arsenal lacked their usual composure, according to manager Mikel Arteta, as his side bowed out of the League Cup semi-final with a 4-0 aggregate defeat by Newcastle United on Wednesday.
The Premier League club came from a goal down to beat Girona 2-1 thanks to Nwaneri's 42nd-minute winner at the Estadi Montilivi on Wednesday. It was Nwaneri's first start in the Champions League.
Rice netted his first Champions League goal inside two minutes to pave the way for a routine victory against the Croatian side that made Arsenal's place in the last 16 of the competition a virtual certainty.
Arsenal's 18-year-old left back Myles Lewis-Skelly was thrown into the deep end against Tottenham Hotspur, one of the Premier League's most goal-hungry teams, but the teenager passed with flying colours in an uplifting derby victory.
Arsenal showed they can cope without the injured Bukayo Saka as they began the year in style by recovering from an early sucker-punch to beat Brentford 3-1 away and move back into second place in the Premier League on Wednesday.
Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka is set to be sidelined for more than two months after an operation on a hamstring injury, manager Mikel Arteta said on Friday.
An injury to Bukayo Saka ahead of a busy festive fixture list cast a shadow over Arsenal's 5-1 victory romp at Crystal Palace on Saturday but if manager Mikel Arteta was worried about that, at least Gabriel Jesus's form offered some comfort.
Gabriel Jesus expects "another war" with Crystal Palace at the weekend, after the Arsenal forward led the charge with a second-half hat-trick in a 3-2 comeback win to reach the League Cup semi-finals on Wednesday.
Raheem Sterling has made just two Premier League starts and two more in the League Cup since joining Arsenal on loan from Chelsea in August and manager Mikel Arteta said he intends to give the forward more minutes over the busy festive period.
Arsenal will be without defender Ben White for a few months after he underwent knee surgery but they are hopeful he will return before the end of the season, manager Mikel Arteta said on Friday.
Manchester City and Arsenal have led the way in the last two Premier League title races but both teams have hit a slump heading into the weekend when their squad depth will be put to the test as they aim to reel in leaders Liverpool.
Arsenal, who have only two wins from their last six games, hogged possession and had 21 goal attempts to Inter's seven at the San Siro, where the winner came via a controversial penalty on the stroke of half-time.
