Sporting CP go dey miss dia captain Morten Hjulmand for dia Champions League quarter-final match against Arsenal. Na big blow for di Portuguese side wey just pull one serious comeback to reach dis stage.
Hjulmand collect yellow card just one minute into di second half of Sporting’s last-16 second leg against Bodo/Glimt. Dat one na him fifth booking for di Champions League dis season, so automatic one-match suspension dey wait am.
Di suspension mean say Hjulmand no go fit play when Arsenal travel to Lisbon for di first leg of dia quarter-final showdown. Di match dey scheduled for around April 7.
Sporting reach quarter-final after one serious drama against Bodo/Glimt. For di first leg, dem lose 3-0, make everybody think say dia Champions League journey don finish.
But for di return leg, Sporting turn am. Dem score three goals for normal time through Goncalo Inacio, Pedro Goncalves, and Luis Javier Suarez. Di goals come between di 78th and 88th minutes, level di aggregate score.
Extra time come, Maximiliano Araujo score early, Rafael Nel add another one late. Di 5-0 win for di night, 5-3 aggregate, end Bodo/Glimt fairytale run for di competition.
Arsenal side dey come into di tie after overcoming Bayer Leverkusen 3-1 on aggregate. Good news for dem be say no suspension concerns dey for di first leg.
Martin Zubimendi and Christian Norgaard, two key Arsenal players, avoid yellow cards for di Leverkusen tie. But caution dey dia side.
Yellow cards for Champions League no dey reset until after quarter-final stage. So if Zubimendi or Norgaard collect another booking against Sporting for any of di two legs, automatic one-match ban go follow.
Plenty other Arsenal players dey on one yellow card already. Riccardo Calafiori, Gabriel, Havertz, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Noni Madueke, Gabriel Martinelli, William Saliba, and Ben White all get one booking wey dey follow dem into dis Sporting double header.
Di absence of Hjulmand, Sporting captain and key midfielder, go affect di team setup. Arsenal get chance to take advantage of dat for di away leg.
Mikel Arteta and him boys go look to start di tie well for Lisbon. Sporting, even without dia captain, go wan prove say dia comeback against Bodo/Glimt no be fluke.
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