10 players could miss Man City vs Arsenal after Pep Guardiola confirms injury setback

Up to 10 players could miss Sunday's Premier League title clash at the Etihad Stadium as Manchester City look to close the gap on Arsenal

As many as 10 players could be ruled out of Manchester City's crucial Premier League showdown with Arsenal through injury. The Gunners currently hold a six-point advantage over City, having played one game more.

The leading two sides in English football's top flight will do battle on Sunday afternoon at the Etihad Stadium. Arsenal will be looking to assert their dominance in the title race, while City will be desperate to claw back vital ground.

Should Pep Guardiola's side come out on top, they'll be snapping at the heels of the visitors and sit just three points adrift with a game in hand. Mikel Arteta's side, however, could extend their lead to nine points by the final whistle.

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With the season entering its decisive phase, both clubs have been struck by injury problems. Here's a look at the players who could be absent for Sunday's blockbuster encounter.

Manchester City

City will be without Ruben Dias for Sunday's fixture, as he remains sidelined with an ankle injury. Guardiola confirmed his absence on Friday.

John Stones will also sit out the clash with Arsenal, having missed City's most recent outing against Chelsea through a thigh problem. He could be in contention to return for their following match against Burnley.

Guardiola will further be deprived of Josko Gvardiol following the defender's leg break against Chelsea in January, though there remains optimism that he could return before the campaign draws to a close.

Nico O'Reilly shone when these two sides faced off in the Carabao Cup final, netting both goals in a 2-0 victory. Despite missing City's fixture against Chelsea, Guardiola remains hopeful that O'Reilly could be available for the clash with the Gunners.

Arsenal

The most significant absentee for the travelling Gunners will be talismanic winger Bukayo Saka. Arteta confirmed on Friday that he would play no part in the fixture as he continues his recovery from an Achilles injury.

Arteta said: "Bukayo is out. That is for sure. Hopefully, he recovers very soon because he is a tremendous player. He is starting to do some stuff, let's see how quickly he can be with us."

Saka is joined on the injury list by Mikel Merino, who is also ruled out of the City fixture with a bone stress fracture in his foot that necessitated surgery. His comeback date remains unclear, with Arteta offering only a blunt response when quizzed about his condition: "Out again."

These two are the only confirmed absentees for Arsenal heading into the match. However, a number of key players are in a desperate battle to prove their fitness in time.

Noni Madueke was substituted during Arsenal's midweek encounter against Sporting CP with what appeared to be a knee injury, though the manager has not ruled him out. He said: "He's a player that pushes through pain so I'm hopeful that he can be available but we have to wait and see if he's able to join [training] tomorrow."

Martin Odegaard, Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber have all sat out matches in recent weeks, yet Arteta remains confident all three will be fit for the trip to Manchester.

He said: "Some players are quite close but the turnaround is short so we will try tomorrow to push everybody and if they are in good condition, they will be part of us and if not they won't."