Arsenal face Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final, with Mikel Arteta having three injury concerns heading into the Wembley showpiece
19:56, 20 Mar 2026
Eberechi Eze and Jurrien Timber are Arsenal injury doubts for the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City
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Eberechi Eze and Jurrien Timber are Arsenal injury doubts for the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City(Image: (Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images))
Mikel Arteta has remained coy on the fitness of Jurrien Timber and Martin Odegaard ahead of Arsenal's Carabao Cup final against Manchester City. The latter has been unavailable since the win over Tottenham, while Timber was forced off last weekend during the 2-0 victory against Everton.
The Gunners boss was asked if they could return at Wembley but he stated that a final decision will be made after training on Saturday. Eberechi Eze has also emerged as a doubt, again, having not been included in any of the photos uploaded to the club website from training on Friday.
He was substituted midway through the second half of the Champions League due to a potential injury but was able to confirm after the game that he was OK. Mikel Merino is therefore Arsenal's only confirmed absentee for the Carabao Cup final as he continues to recover from foot surgery.
With all of that being said, football.london has rounded up the latest updates on Arsenal's injured stars and when they could all return.
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Martin Odegaard
Since February 2026 began, Odegaard has played just 58 minutes having been plagued by several issues. The latest of those was suffered in the draw against Brentford four weeks ago with it certainly seeming as though he will not be able to return for the Carabao Cup final.
What Arteta has said: "We have another session tomorrow, so let's see if they can make it."
Possible return date: Southampton (A) - April 4
Jurrien Timber
Having been taken off just one week ago, Timber is much more likely to feature assuming his issue is minor and the importance of him to the team. His inclusion in the Netherlands squad for the upcoming international break is also a positive sign it is not a big issue.
What Arteta has said: "We have another session tomorrow, so let's see if they can make it."
Possible return date: Manchester City (N) - March 22.
Eberechi Eze
Eze's absence from training pictures on Friday is a certainly a cause for concern but it is entirely possible he was working indoors and is being managed with the hope of featuring on Sunday at Wembley.
Eberechi Eze celebrates scoring for Arsenal against Bayer Leverkusen
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Eberechi Eze was taken off with a potential injury after scoring a wondergoal for Arsenal against Bayer Leverkusen
What Arteta has said: "We have another training session tomorrow, so the ones that are in contention, hopefully they can give us good news."
Possible return date: Manchester City (N) - March 22.
Mikel Merino
Merino underwent an operation on his foot in January but is pushing to return before the end of the season.
W hat Arteta has said (Feb 11): "Well, I think the doctors were really happy the way it went. Yeah, now it starts. Obviously, it's a long process. You're talking about bone healing, so you need to be patient.
"You respect the timings, and I'm sure Mikel is going to do everything that he possibly can to speed up the process. We're talking about months, whether it's three, four or five, we don't know."
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