{"id":656,"date":"2026-03-18T21:33:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T21:33:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/osport.com.ng\/?p=656"},"modified":"2026-03-18T21:33:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T21:33:09","slug":"arsenal-vs-man-city-two-key-city-stars-set-to-miss-carabao-cup-final","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/?p=656","title":{"rendered":"Arsenal vs Man City: Two key City stars set to miss Carabao Cup final"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p><strong>Arsenal head into the Carabao Cup final with momentum building at a crucial stage of the season, and fresh team news has added another layer to Sunday\u2019s clash with Manchester City.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Mikel Arteta\u2019s side continue to grow in confidence after strong performances across competitions. The squad looks balanced, sharp, and ready for a defining moment at Wembley.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Manchester City, however, arrive with concerns in defence. Pep Guardiola faces selection issues ahead of the final, with key absences forcing potential changes at the back.<\/p>\n<p>That development could hand Arsenal a significant opportunity as they aim to secure silverware.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Gvardiol and Guehi to miss Wembley clash<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Manchester City will be without <strong>If Guardiol<\/strong> due to injury, while <strong>Marc Guehi<\/strong> is unavailable through ineligibility.<\/p>\n<p>Those absences leave Guardiola short in defence heading into one of the biggest games of the season.<\/p>\n<p>Gvardiol\u2019s absence removes a key option on the left side of City\u2019s defence. Guehi\u2019s situation further limits depth at centre-back.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">&#x1f6a8;&#x1f534; Manchester City will be missing defenders Josko Gvardiol (injury) and Marc Guehi (ineligible) for Sunday\u2019s League Cup final against Arsenal&#x1f633;&#x2705; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/UNmR7CwklQ\">pic.twitter.com\/UNmR7CwklQ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Goaldata \u2013 Arsenal Zone (@ArsenalZNE) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ArsenalZNE\/status\/2034319844024406200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 18, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Reports suggest, the defensive issues could force Guardiola into reshuffling his back line against an in-form Arsenal side.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Arsenal given chance to exploit defensive issues<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Arsenal have shown strong form in recent weeks, with improvements in both control and attacking output.<\/p>\n<p>Arteta\u2019s side now play with greater balance. Midfield control has improved, while the forward line continues to create consistent chances.<\/p>\n<p>Facing a weakened defensive unit presents a clear opportunity.<\/p>\n<p>Arsenal must look to apply pressure early and target any uncertainty in City\u2019s defensive structure.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Big test remains for Arteta\u2019s side<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Despite the absences, Manchester City remain one of the strongest sides in Europe.<\/p>\n<p>Guardiola\u2019s team still carry quality across the pitch and can adapt quickly.<\/p>\n<p>Arsenal must maintain focus, intensity, and discipline to secure the result.<\/p>\n<p>However, the defensive disruption gives Arteta\u2019s side a strong platform to deliver a statement performance and lift the trophy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Arsenal head into the Carabao Cup final with momentum building at a crucial stage of<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":657,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-656","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arsenal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/656","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=656"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/656\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/657"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=656"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=656"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osport.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=656"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}