Arsenal injury news: Declan Rice among five players absent from training ahead of Sporting Lisbon clash

Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice was among five players who missed an open training session on Tuesday morning (April 14).

The Gunners are preparing for the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie with Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon, who are looking to overturn a one-goal deficit from the first leg.

Arsenal will be aiming to avoid back-to-back defeats at the Emirates on Wednesday after suffering a shock loss to Bournemouth in the Premier League on Saturday, blowing the top-flight title race wide open.

Teenage sensation Junior Kroupi opened the scoring for the visiting Cherries in the 17th minute before Viktor Gyokeres held his nerve from the spot to equalise, however, the South Coast club snatched victory late on courtesy of Alex Scott.

Mikel Arteta's side are floundering as they approach the business end of the 2025-26 campaign, now only six points ahead of second-placed Manchester City, who welcome the Gunners to the Etihad on Sunday.

Rice, Saka miss Arsenal training ahead of CL clash

Before a seismic trip to Manchester in the Premier League on the weekend, Arsenal must take care of last-eight matters in the Champions League, with Primeira Liga side Sporting Lisbon the visitors on Wednesday.

The Gunners hosted an opening training session in the capital on Tuesday morning (April 14), with a number of notable first-team stars absent, including influential midfielder Declan Rice, who played 90 minutes against Bournemouth on the weekend.

Last featuring for Arteta's side at Wembley during the EFL Cup final defeat to Manchester City, Bukayo Saka (muscle) also missed the first-team training session, throwing his availability for Wednesday night into serious doubt.

A host of other big names were absent from the session in London Colney, including playmaking midfielder Martin Odegaard (discomfort), defender Jurrien Timber (muscle) and Italian Riccardo Calafiori (knock).

It remains to be seen whether any of the five players mentioned above recover fast enough to feature on Wednesday, when Arsenal will be fighting to book a spot in the final four of the Champions League.

Injury issues at a critical moment

Facing a Champions League quarter-final and title rivals Manchester City in the space of five days, it would be difficult to create a more crucial week in the 2025-26 season of trophy-chasing Arsenal.

The Gunners have already let two potential silverware lifts slip through their fingers, losing the EFL Cup to the Citizens at Wembley before being shockingly knocked out of the FA Cup by second-tier Southampton.

Last weekend's home defeat to Bournemouth in the Premier League has piled more even pressure on Arteta and his players, who need to produce a positive response to late-season adversity over the next seven days.