Sunday’s Carabao Cup final at Wembley Stadium is not just a cup final. For Arsenal and Manchester City, it is a chance to land a psychological blow on a direct rival at the most important stage of the Premier League season.
Arsenal enter as favourites, and Mikel Arteta’s side have shown real grit throughout this knockout run.
And the medical staff at Arsenal’s training ground have been working hard to assess the fitness of several players, but the news is not all positive heading into the weekend.
Mikel Merino ruled out of Arsenal’s Carabao Cup final with foot injury
The most significant absentee is Mikel Merino. The Spanish midfielder underwent surgery on a serious foot injury and is not expected to return until late May 2026.
That timeline effectively rules him out of Sunday’s final.
Having his physical presence and technical ability in the middle of the pitch would have been a real asset against a Manchester City midfield that knows how to control games.
Now having Merino is particularly frustrating given how important he has become to Arsenal’s ability to deploy multiple systems when fit.
Martin Odegaard fitness doubt adds to Arsenal’s pre-Wembley worry
Adding to Arteta’s problems is uncertainty over club captain Martin Odegaard.
The Norwegian is dealing with a knee injury, and while his expected return date falls in late March 2026, the timing makes his involvement in Sunday’s final highly unlikely.
Odegaard is Arsenal’s creative heartbeat, and his absence means Eze will need to step up yet again and carry that creative responsibilities at Wembley.
Without Odegaard pulling the strings from midfield, Arsenal lose one of their most important creative outlets. His ability to find pockets of space, dictate tempo makes him extremely difficult to replace like for like.
Arteta has options, but none of them are Martin Odegaard, and City will be well aware of that going into the game.
