Arsenal face Crystal Palace at the Emirates Stadium on matchday 34 of the Premier League season.
Though the Premier League title race has all but been decided, Arsenal have five games left to play to secure as many points as possible.
Naturally, Mikel Arteta will want to win all of the Gunners’ remaining games, but with a Champions League semi-final on the horizon, league action certainly takes the back seat.
Building form remains important, as seen when Arsenal returned to winning ways to thrash Ipswich Town 4-0, and now, a London derby awaits.
Mikel Arteta shares Arsenal injury update
With Paris Saint-Germain waiting for Arsenal in the Champions League semi-final first leg, Arteta won’t want any injuries to plague his squad.
Arsenal’s injury list this season has been a nightmare, with a repeat of Gabriel Magalhaes’ luck before the Real Madrid clash not needed.
Against Ipswich, there was a scare as Bukayo Saka was treated with an ice pack after being on the receiving end of a red-card challenge from Leif Davis.
Arteta admitted that Saka was fine after the game, and gave a further update on the winger and others before Palace visit the Emirates.
“We have to wait and see now how he reacts after the session, but it’s nothing too serious,” Arteta said of Saka, but there was a less encouraging update on Jorginho.
Arteta confirmed that Jorginho will be out for a ‘few weeks’, adding that Riccardo Calafiori will also not be fit to face Palace.
With the latest instalment of team news in mind, it will be fascinating to see if Arteta opts to rotate his squad with PSG coming up next.
Crystal Palace’s record away to Arsenal
Whether Arteta decides to make tweaks to his starting XI will be something to eye, however, the Arsenal manager might have an incentive to do so.
Crystal Palace’s record away to Arsenal is one that swings almost entirely in the Gunners’ favour, as the Eagles have won as little as 10.7% of their clashes in N5.
| Played | Won | Drawn | Lost |
| 28 | 3 | 7 | 18 |
The last time Palace beat the Gunners away from home in the Premier League was in 2019, when goals from Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang weren’t enough, as the visitors won 3-2.
Arteta will hope for another win against Arsenal’s London rivals on matchday 34, but for many at the Emirates, thoughts will be firmly on the Champions League semis.
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