Ruben Dias won’t suit up for Manchester City as they play Arsenal at Wembley to determine who will be crowned the 2026 EFL Cup champion. This puts the sky blues’ defense (also without Gianluigi Donnarumma in net against Arsenal) in a lot of pressure, as the Portuguese center back is one of their best players and leaders.
According to Sam Lee of The Athletic, Ruben Dias is sidelined due to a hamstring injury. The 28-year old is a key component on Pep Guardiola’s tactics. However, now the team will have to shift into alternatives.
Abdukodir Khusanov and Nathan Aké will be the two center backs for the game. Aké is 5’11” while Dias is 6’1” and City face Arsenal, one of the deadliest set-piece teams in soccer. Hence, this could create some sort of chaos. Follow Arsenal vs Manchester City live with us and catch all the action from the game!
Aké is the resourceful solution for all things defense
The 31-year old leftie is seen as the plug-in player on the City defense. He has played 24 games this season, starting only 11 of them. He is normally seen as the one who can cover a fullback, center back, or even defensive midfield issues when the starters are not available.
Nathan Ake of Manchester City
While those players are always welcomed on a roster, usually the manager won’t use them starting games, because players like Aké are good in plenty of stuff but aren’t specialists in one particular area. They’re utility players.
see also
2026 EFL Cup final prize money: How much does the winner of Arsenal vs Man City get?
Defending set pieces will be Man City’s biggest task
As of early March 2026, Arsenal scored over 30 goals on set-pieces in all competitions. Out of those 30, at least 18 have come from corner kicks, according to FlashScore and Chris Wright of ESPN. That’s concerning even if the likes of Eberechi Eze and Martin Odegaard aren’t playing today.
Without Dias, this task is especially harder, as Dias is one of the best aerial defenders in City’s squad. Per GiveMeSport‘s Vijievan Jeevathayalan, Manchester City have scored just nine Premier League goals from set-pieces, though they rank as one of the best set-piece defenses in the UK.
Can they keep their strong defense without Dias? A win or loss could impact Manchester City and Arsenal as they’re also involved in a dramatic Premier League title race.
