Sporting CP vs Arsenal LIVE!
Arsenal return to Champions League action tonight hoping to end their long away day hoodoo on the continent under Mikel Arteta. It is more than a year now since the Gunners last won on their travels in Europe’s elite club competition, winning only one of their last seven and none of the last five, finding goals very hard to come by during that stretch.
Halting such a run this evening would offer a huge boost to their chances of finishing in the top eight of the new league phase and securing direct qualification for the last 16 without the need for a nervy two-legged play-off tie in the New Year. But they could have their work cut out at the Estadio Jose Alvalade against an in-form Sporting team who are unbeaten in Europe so far this season and stunned Manchester City 4-1 at home earlier this month.
The reigning Portuguese champions don’t look to have been adversely impacted by the exit of head coach Ruben Amorim to Manchester United, with successor Joao Pereira delivering a 6-0 triumph in his first game in charge with rumoured Arsenal transfer target Viktor Gyokeres once again among the goals. Follow Sporting Lisbon vs Arsenal live below!
Sporting CP vs Arsenal latest news
Kick-off: 8pm GMT | Estadio Jose Alvalade
How to watch: TNT Sports
Arsenal team news: Rice, Martinelli and Havertz return
Sporting CP team news: Edwards starts with Gyokeres
Score prediction
Mikel Arteta swerves Viktor Gyokeres questions
19:42
Unsurprisingly given those strong transfer links, Mikel Arteta faced plenty of questions about Viktor Gyokeres’ qualities at last night’s pre-match press conference.
But the Arsenal boss seemed to swerve them all.
“I would like to talk about the team, the coaches and how phenomenal they have been,” he said.
“The run they are on is incredible, that tells you it’s not only about their qualities, but their ambition, the team energy they have, that’s a great challenge we have.”
To come here tomorrow, make a statement and show that we are capable against this kind of opponent to be ourselves and win the game.”
Edwards starts alongside Gyokeres in Sporting CP attack
19:18
Joao Pereira changed things up for his first game in charge since being promoted from Sporting B duties to succeed Ruben Amorim, a 6-0 home thrashing of third-tier Amarante in the Portuguese Cup.
As mentioned, both Nuno Santos and Pedro Goncalves are out tonight, while Zeno Debast and Eduardo Quaresma aren’t involved either.
Arsenal will have to be wary of that potent attack spearheaded by Viktor Gyokeres, who is flanked by ex-Tottenham starlet Marcus Edwards and former Wolves man Francisco Trincao.
Ousmane Diomande is a key figure at the back, with Sporting captained by Denmark midfielder Morten Hjulmand – who scored against England at Euro 2024.
Swedish marksman Gyokeres – linked with Arsenal alongside the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United – has 24 goals to his name in just 19 appearances across all competitions so far this season, continuing his impressive rise since leaving Coventry for Lisbon last summer.
Rice, Martinelli, Partey and Havertz all in for Arsenal
19:10
So as expected, Declan Rice, Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz all return to the Arsenal starting lineup tonight after being left on the bench against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
Jorginho, Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus each drop to the bench as a result, as does Mikel Merino with Thomas Partey also starting after his effective goal-scoring appearance as a half-time substitute at the weekend.
Otherwise it’s as you were for Arsenal, with the back five unchanged as Jurrien Timber stays at right-back in the absence of Ben White and Riccardo Calafiori on the left.
Kieran Tierney is indeed among the substitutes.
Sporting CP lineup
18:57 , George Flood
Sporting XI: Israel, St Juste, Diomande, Inacio, Quenda, Hjulmand, Morita, Araujo, Trincao, Edwards, Gyokeres
Arsenal lineup
18:53 , George Flood
Arsenal XI: Raya, Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori, Partey, Rice, Odegaard, Saka, Martinelli, Havertz
Subs: Neto, Setford, Tierney, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Lewis-Skelly, Merino, Jorginho, Sterling, Nwaneri, Trossard, Jesus
Sporting CP vs Arsenal head to head history
18:42
Sporting have never previously beaten Arsenal in four attempts, with three successive draws in the Europa League following the Gunners’ Danny Welbeck-inspired 1-0 win in Lisbon back in 2018.
Sporting held on with 10 men to achieve a goalless draw at the Emirates the next month, while these two sides met again in the last 16 of the Europa League in March 2023.
William Saliba was on the scoresheet in an entertaining first leg in Portugal that finished 2-2, but Arsenal were dumped out of the competition 5-3 on penalties after a 1-1 home draw that saw Granit Xhaka’s opening goal answered by a belter from Pedro Goncalves.
Gabriel Martinelli was the villain in the shootout, with Nuno Santos netting the winning spot-kick.
18:33 , George Flood
A picturesque look at tonight’s venue, the 50,095-capacity Estadio Jose Alvalade – named after one of the club’s founders and first member.
There will be some atmosphere in store here tonight, with Sporting typically so strong and full of goals in front of their own passionate fans – as Manchester City recently found out to their cost.
Arsenal struggling for Champions League goals
18:27 , George Flood
Eddie Nketiah – now of Crystal Palace of course – was the last Arsenal player to score a Champions League away goal, scoring for a much-changed side in their 1-1 draw against PSV Eindhoven last December with qualification for the last 16 already secured.
Mikel Arteta was asked during last night’s pre-match press conference at the Estadio Jose Alvalade if he puts their barren run in front of goal in the road in Europe down chiefly to inexperience.
“I wouldn’t say that’s the most important thing, but the efficiency we have shown inside the box, at this level, with the number of chances you are normally able to generate in the Champions League, has not been at the level that is required to win consistently,” he said.
“I always say the Champions League is about the boxes, small margins and details, and you have to get all those right to win, especially away from home.”
Mikel Arteta: Arsenal have to take next step
18:17 , George Flood
Expanding further on Arsenal’s struggles on the road in Europe, Mikel Arteta urged his team to take that next step in terms of their performances.
“Not all of the games have been the same,” he said. “It’s true that some of those games were when we’d already qualified.
“But it’s true we have to improve the results and we have to find the ways to understand what has been missing.
“Sometimes it’s been performance to be fair, and sometimes it’s been different aspects, and that’s the next step we have to make as a team.”
Mikel Arteta urges Arsenal to make Champions League statement
18:05
You have to go back to October 24 of last year for Arsenal’s last away win in the Champions League, when Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus scored either side of half-time in a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Sevilla at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.
That result came on the back of a shock 2-1 loss to Lens and is the only time in their last seven European road trips that the Gunners have returned to north London with all three points.
They haven’t won any of their last five European away meetings, failing to score in four of those, and Mikel Arteta has challenged his side to develop a ruthless edge and make a statement in Lisbon tonight.
“It’s certainly something we have to improve,” he said yesterday.
“We have the right steps, and looking back at the way we played against Inter, against a team that has been so dominant in the league, were in the Champions League final and should have won it.
“We played and dominated the game we should have won. But the reality is you have to make it happen, and we didn’t.
“Those steps are what we have to take next, be ruthless and be much more efficient in the opposition box, and when we get there do what we have to do to take the three points away from here.”
Sporting CP vs Arsenal prediction
17:55 , George Flood
This is on paper Arsenal’s toughest remaining fixture in the league phase, with two home matches against Monaco and Dinamo Zagreb and a trip to Girona to come after.
Sporting have already showed how dangerous they can be, particularly on home soil, and the Gunners would probably be satisfied if the points were shared tonight.
Draw, 1-1.
Early Sporting CP team news
17:49 , George Flood
Sporting are without wingers Nuno Santos and Pedro Goncalves due to injury.
Fitness tests were expected for both Belgian midfielder Zeno Debast and centre-back Eduardo Quaresma.
Former Tottenham youngster Marcus Edwards will be hoping for a chance to start against former north London foes tonight.
Early Arsenal team news
17:41 , George Flood
Arsenal’s injury woes have improved plenty of late, with the likes of Bukayo Saka, Riccardo Calafiori and Leandro Trossard all fit to start against Nottingham Forest after knocks, while Martin Odegaard got another game under his belt.
It allowed Mikel Arteta to change things up a bit at the Emirates, holding the likes of Declan Rice – who, like Saka, withdrew from England duty through injury – in reserve along with Kai Havertz and Gabriel Martinelli.
None of that trio ended up coming off the bench on Saturday, so you’d expect them all to return to the lineup tonight.
Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu are Arsenal’s only confirmed injury absentees now, with Kieran Tierney part of the travelling squad after recovering from a serious hamstring issue suffered with Scotland at Euro 2024 over the summer.
If he gets any minutes for Arsenal tonight, it will be his first appearance for the club since August 2023 after that injury nightmare and a spell out on loan with Real Sociedad.
How to watch Sporting CP vs Arsenal
17:36 , George Flood
TV channel: The game will be broadcast live in the UK on TNT Sports 1. Coverage starts at 7pm GMT.
Live stream: TNT Sports subscribers will also be able to watch on a live stream online via the Discovery+ app and website.
Sporting CP vs Arsenal live
17:34 , George Flood
Good evening and welcome to Standard Sport’s latest live coverage of Arsenal in the revamped 2024/25 Champions League.
The Gunners are in Lisbon tonight, looking to secure their first away win in Europe’s elite club competition for more than a year which would provide a sizable boost to their hopes of sealing a top-eight finish in the brand new league phase that would ensure direct qualification for the last 16 in the New Year.
Arsenal are full of confidence after the fit-again duo of Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard inspired them to end a four-game winless Premier League run against Nottingham Forest over the weekend, yet Sporting should pose an altogether different challenge having yet to lose in Europe so far this term.
Despite highly-rated head coach Ruben Amorim’s recent exit to Manchester United, the reigning Portuguese champions, boosted by the goals of Viktor Gyokeres, don’t look to have skipped a beat with successor Joao Pereira getting a 6-0 victory in his first match in charge.
Kick-off at the Estadio Jose Alvalade this evening is at 8pm GMT, so stay tuned for match build-up, latest team news and live updates, plus expert analysis from Standard Sport’s Arsenal correspondent Simon Collings.
