Arsenal travel to Sporting CP for the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal meeting with Mikel Arteta’s team looking to avoid a third straight defeat, and you can follow it live with ESPN.
The Gunners’ dreams of a quadruple were ended in decisive fashion by Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final, and Saturday’s 2-1 loss at Southampton ended any hope of the treble.
Meanwhile, Sporting head into this one on the back of three straight victories.
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Despite Arsenal’s missteps of late, they remain on course to clinch a long-awaited Premier League title and are fancied to lift the first major European trophy in the club’s history.
Tuesday’s match sees summer signing Viktor Gyökeres return to the club that turned him into a big-name striker.
The Sweden international scored 97 goals in 103 games for Sporting and was on the pitch last time Arsenal visited the Estádio José Alvalade in November 2024. Arteta’s men outclassed Sporting on that day, registering a comprehensive 5-1 victory.
Sporting have faced Arsenal five times and are still waiting for their first win (D3, L2), but their impressive home form — they’ve won their last 17 in front of their own supporters — will give them hope that this could be the night that history is upended.
Arsenal are the only side in the Champions League yet to suffer a defeat — they finished top of the table during the league phase and were too much for Bayer Leverkusen to handle in the round of 16.
