Sporting CP v Arsenal LIVE: Champions League team news, line-ups and more tonight

Arsenal need to be ruthless to secure a win against Sporting and snap their negative run of form away from home in the Champions League, manager Mikel Arteta said ahead of tonight’s clash.

Winless in their last four European outings, Arsenal arrive in Portugal following a 1-0 defeat against Inter Milan at San Siro earlier this month.

Arteta’s side currently sit 12th in the new Champions League 36-team format, where the top eight teams qualify automatically for the last 16 and the next 16 enter a two-legged playoff to join them.

The Spaniard acknowledged that improving their away form is key to his team’s chances in Europe’s top-tier club competition.

Sporting XI: Israel; St Juste, Diomande, Inacio; Quenda, Hjulmand, Morita, Maxi Araujo; Trincao, Edwards, Gyokeres.

Great news on the bench for Arsenal, where Kieran Tierney is back after five months out following a hamstring injury sustained at Euro 2024.

So Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz return to the front line, as Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus drop back to the bench. Mikel Arteta also makes two changes in midfield, with Jorginho and Mikel Merino dropping out for Declan Rice and Thomas Partey.

Arsenal XI: Raya; Timber, Gabriel, Saliba, Calafiori; Rice, Odegaard, Partey; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli.

Subs: Neto, Setford, Tierney, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Lewis-Skelly, Merino, Jorginho, Sterling, Nwaneri, Trossard, Jesus.

Confirmed line-ups will be landing shortly. Here’s the team news:

There are no new injury concerns for Arsenal after the win over Forest, with Ben White the only major absentee after he underwent knee surgery. Takehiro Tomiyasu and Kieran Tierney are still unavailable too.

Odegaard will hope to start again after a successful return from injury at the weekend, while Kai Havertz and Declan Rice will be hoping to get back their places in the starting eleven after they were both unused substitutes in the 3-0 win at the weekend.

The Gunners also welcomed back Calafiori, and he can hope to start again with White still absent, though Arteta may choose to go with Oleksandr Zinchenko as he manages the Italian’s workload on his return.

Gabriel Martinelli also sat out the win over Forest, and he’ll hope to be involved over Leandro Trossard on the wing.

Sporting have a couple of notable absentees, with attacking midfielder Pote and wing-back Nuno Santos both missing out. However, Geny Catamo and Maximiliano Araujo are in contention to start after missing the weekend’s cup win.

Promising young centre-back Gonçalo Inácio is back fit after a period out, while key man Morten Hjulmand and Viktor Gyokeres will lead the midfield and attack respectively.

Injury news both good and bad for Arsenal this week.

Ben White has been ruled out for “months” after needing surgery, but they do have Kieran Tierney available after a long, long absence. Factoring in a loan spell too, he hasn’t played for the club since summer 2023.

Takehiro Tomiyasu remains sidelined, but everybody else should now be back fit, meaning Arteta could rotate after Declan Rice and Kai Havertz were named subs at the weekend.

The Gunners have failed to win – or score – in their last four European matches on the road.

A narrow 1-0 defeat at Inter Milan last time out has left Arteta’s side down in 12th place in the new-look Champions League table.

And the Spaniard believes a victory in the Portuguese capital, against a Sporting side who, when still managed by Ruben Amorim, thumped Manchester City 4-1 earlier this month, will prove they belong in elite company.

“It’s certainly something we have to improve,” said Arteta.

“I think we have made the right steps and, looking back with the way we played against Inter, which is a team that has been so dominant in their league, reached the final of the Champions League which they should have won, to play and dominate that game.

“But the reality is that you have to make it happen and we didn’t.

“Making those steps is what we have to do next. Be ruthless, be efficient in the opposition box and do what we have to do to take the three points away from here.”

Florentino Perez may have been keen to grandstand at Real Madrid’s general assembly on Sunday, but some of his stars have been more concerned with just standing still. Almost literally. One player recently complained to friends – and anyone else who would listen – that the forward line does not run enough. It is not just one star’s gripe, either.

It’s not difficult to see what has changed. Kylian Mbappe has been signed on a wage befitting his status as one of the best in the world. This is the kind of star that Perez has long felt defined Madrid, and his staff have worked hard to get them back to that level over a difficult half-decade in financial terms. The recent Champions League victories were a product of compromise rather than complete power. Madrid had been forensically studious about every signing, ensuring each one fit into a 10-year plan.

No more. They’re back to the biggest.

Miguel Delaney on the Champions League favourites:

All eyes will be on Viktor Gyokeres it’s fair to say. A hat-trick plundered against Man City threw him front and centre, but his form has been frankly ridiculous in front of goal: across the last month he has scored 17 goals in just nine matches for club and country.

A lot have been against less-than-stellar opponents, it’s true, but even so…many strikers won’t hit 17 this season, let alone this month.

And a hat-trick against Man City counts for plenty, too.