Arsenal defender Piero Hincapie has insisted his full concentration is on securing victory in Sunday’s Carabao Cup final against Manchester City, rather than the potential ramifications for the Premier League title race.
The season's first major trophy will be contested at Wembley by the top two teams in the Premier League.
League leaders Arsenal currently hold a nine-point advantage, and a win over Pep Guardiola’s side could inflict a significant psychological blow to City’s aspirations of closing the gap on Mikel Arteta’s runaway leaders.
However, when questioned on the final’s impact on the title race, Hincapie told reporters: "I don’t know. It’s going to be a very difficult game. We’re very focused on wanting to win it, but we have to work hard to win the title.
“We’re really focused on the final, which is a very important final. We’re going to train very hard to get to the final in the best way possible and to win the title. That’s the most important thing."
This weekend marks the second encounter between Arsenal and City this campaign, following a 1-1 league draw at the Emirates Stadium in September, where Gabriel Martinelli secured a point for the Gunners with a stoppage-time equaliser.
The two teams are also due to meet at the Etihad Stadium in the Premier League next month.
Arteta’s team advanced to the Champions League quarter-finals with a 3-1 aggregate victory over Bayer Leverkusen earlier this week, keeping them on course for an unprecedented quadruple.
Hincapie expressed mixed emotions about eliminating his former club Leverkusen, but could not hide his delight at Arsenal’s continued pursuit of honours on four fronts.
He stated: "I’m really excited to have qualified for the quarter-finals with my club, but I’m also a bit sad because it was against my former club. This is football and I’m really happy."
