LONDON (AFP) – Arsenal said on Friday they had asked the Premier League to postpone their north London derby at Tottenham Hotspur tonight due to a combination of coronavirus cases, injuries and players at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Martin Odegaard missed Thursday’s goalless League Cup semi-final first-leg draw at Liverpool due to COVID-19, with Emile Smith Rowe and Takehiro Tomiyasu ruled out through injury.
Cedric Soares and Bukayo Saka suffered injuries at Anfield in a match where Granit Xhaka was sent off.
Arsenal were already without Thomas Partey, Mohamed Elneny, Nicolas Pepe and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang due to their AFCON commitments.
“We can confirm we have made an application to the Premier League for the postponement of the north London derby against Tottenham Hotspur,” said an Arsenal statement.
“We have reluctantly taken this step but we have many players currently unavailable across our squad as a result of COVID, injuries and players away with their countries at AFCON.”
