All the latest team news ahead of this weekend's English Premier League fixtures.
Saturday, September 22nd
Chelsea (1) v Stoke (12)
Chelsea expect Oscar to be fit after an ankle problem but Daniel Sturridge again misses out, while fellow hamstring injury victim Marko Marin is edging closer to making his debut.
Stoke will be without defender Andy Wilkinson, who starts a three-match ban. Midfielder Jamie Ness could be involved having returned to training after his groin injury.
Last season:Chelsea 1 Stoke 0, Stoke 0 Chelsea 0
Last five league matches:Chelsea W W W W D; Stoke D D D D D
Top scorers(all competitions): Oscar & Fernando Torres (Chelsea) 3; Peter Crouch (Stoke) 3
Match odds:H 2-7 A 8-1 D 4-1
Referee:Chris Foy (Merseyside).
Southampton (20) v Aston Villa (13)
Saints new boys Gaston Ramirez and Maya Yoshida are pushing for full debuts after coming off the bench in last weekend’s 6-1 thrashing by Arsenal — with the latter replacing Jos Hooiveld, who is optimistic of returning from the calf injury which forced him off. Guly do Prado could return after being left out of the squad at the Emirates Stadium, while Jack Cork has overcome an ankle problem picked up in pre-season.
Villa manager Paul Lambert could hand striker Christian Benteke his first Premier League start following his goalscoring cameo against Swansea. Chris Herd and Fabian Delph are available after injuries but Marc Albrighton (foot) is not ready and Richard Dunne (groin) and Gary Gardner (ligaments) are sidelined.
Last season:No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:Southampton W L L L L; Aston Villa L L L D W
Top scorers(all competitions): Rickie Lambert & Emmanuel Mayuka (Southampton) 2; Christian Benteke (Aston Villa) 4
Match odds:H 7-5 A 9-5 D 11-5
Referee:Jon Moss (W Yorkshire).
Swansea (5) v Everton (7)
Ashley Williams (ankle), Leon Britton (illness), Jonathan de Guzman and Danny Graham (both ankle) are carrying knocks but should be available for Swansea. However, Kemy Agustien (calf) joins a lengthy list of absentees including Neil Taylor (ankle), Chico Flores (suspension), Kyle Bartley (thigh) and Garry Monk (back). Boss Michael Laudrup could hand first Premier League starts to Pablo Hernandez and Ki Sung-yueng.
Everton are without striker Nikica Jelavic, who bruised his knee and shin in a collision with a post early on in the 2-2 draw with Newcastle on Monday. Midfielder Darron Gibson is also out as he continues his recovery from a thigh strain while full-back Tony Hibbert has a knock and is a doubt.
Last season:Swansea 0 Everton 2, Everton 1 Swansea 0
Last five league matches:Swansea W W W D L; Everton W W W L D
Top scorers(all competitions): Michu (Swansea) 4; Victor Anichebe, Marouane Fellaini & Kevin Mirallas (Everton) 2
Match odds:H 11-5 A 13-10 D 11-5
Referee:Anthony Taylor (Cheshire).
West Brom (6) v Reading (19)
Baggies striker Peter Odemwingie serves the first game of a three-match ban, opening the door for the likes of Markus Rosenberg, Romelu Lukaku and Marc-Antoine Fortune to seize their chance up front. Full-back Steven Reid could be available after a hamstring injury but defender Goran Popov is set to miss out with a groin problem.
Goalkeeper Alex McCarthy looks set to retain his place in the Reading team, with regular number one Adam Federici still struggling with a knee injury. Winger Jimmy Kebe is close to a return following a hamstring problem, but tomorrow's game comes too soon, while striker Jason Roberts (calf) remains unavailable.
Last season:No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:West Brom L W D W L; Reading D L D L L
Top scorers(all competitions): Shane Long (West Brom) 3; Pavel Pogrebnyak (Reading) 2
Match odds:H 5-6 A 3-1 D 12-5
Referee:Michael Oliver (Northumberland).
West Ham (8) v Sunderland (15)
West Ham’s on-loan striker Andy Carroll has returned to light training after a hamstring injury but will not figure tomorrow — so Carlton Cole and Modibo Maiga are set to lead the attack. Midfielder Matt Jarvis could make his home debut after a substitute appearance at Norwich, but Jack Collison (knee) is out.
Sunderland winger Adam Johnson is likely to miss out as he struggles to shake off a thigh injury. Carlos Cuellar (hamstring) is out while fellow defenders Phil Bardsley (ankle) and Wes Brown (knee) are making good progress but are still short of match fitness.
Last season:No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:West Ham W W L W D; Sunderland L L D D D
Top scorers(all competitions): Kevin Nolan (West Ham) 2; Steven Fletcher (Sunderland) 3
Match odds:H 5-4 A 21-10 D 21-10
Referee:Lee Mason (Lancashire).
Wigan (14) v Fulham (9)
Defender Antolin Alcaraz is Wigan’s only worry — the centre-back picked up a groin injury on international duty with Paraguay and missed the 4-0 defeat by Manchester United last weekend. Alcaraz will be given a late fitness test but the other players who returned from the international break with knocks are all fully fit.
Fulham welcome back Bryan Ruiz and Mladen Petric. Both strikers missed last weekend's 2-0 win over West Brom and will vie for a place alongside Dimitar Berbatov. Mahamadou Diarra (knee), Kieran Richardson (hip), Kerim Frei (pelvis) and Philippe Senderos (foot) remain sidelined, while new recruit Ashkan Dejagah is not yet match fit.
Last season:Fulham 2 Wigan 1, Wigan 0 Fulham 2
Last five league matches:Wigan W L W D L; Fulham L W L L W
Top scorers(all competitions): Franco Di Santo (Wigan) 2; Dimitar Berbatov, Damien Duff, Mladen Petric & Steve Sidwell (Fulham) 2
Match odds:H 6-4 A 17-10 D 11-5
Referee:Lee Probert (Wiltshire).
Sunday, September 23rd
Liverpool (17) v Man Utd (2)
Steven Gerrard, Luis Suarez, Glen Johnson, Martin Skrtel, Daniel Agger, Joe Allen and Martin Kelly return after being rested for the Europa League win at Young Boys. Forwards Fabio Borini and Raheem Sterling are set to start while midfielder Jonjo Shelvey staked a claim for inclusion with two goals in Switzerland.
United winger Ashley Young has been ruled out for a further two to three weeks with knee cartilage trouble. Wayne Rooney will also be absent due to a gashed thigh despite reports he was due to make an earlier-than-expected comeback, while Darren Fletcher, who came on as a substitute in the Champions League win over Galatasaray having recovered from a chronic bowel condition, will not start as Alex Ferguson instead pinpoints next week's League Cup clash with Newcastle.
Last season:Man Utd 2 Liverpool 1, Liverpool 1 Man Utd 1
Last five league matches:Liverpool L L D L D; Man Utd W L W W W
Top scorers(all competitions): Luis Suarez (Liverpool) 3; Robin van Persie (Man Utd) 4
Match odds:H 15-8 A 11-8 D 11-5
Referee:Mark Halsey (Lancashire).
Man City (4) v Arsenal (3)
City midfielder Samir Nasri looks set to miss the clash against his former club with a hamstring injury. Striker Sergio Aguero is poised to return after overcoming a knee problem while manager Roberto Mancini has said there are no disciplinary issues concerning forward Mario Balotelli. Defender Joleon Lescott will hope to reclaim his place but right-back Micah Richards (ankle) remains sidelined.
Arsenal will again be without first-choice goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny because of an ankle problem. Jack Wilshere (ankle) and Emmanuel Frimpong (knee) returned to training this week, but are some way from first-team contention. Winger Tomas Rosicky (hamstring) and defender Bacary Sagna (broken leg) are expected to feature within the next fortnight.
Last season:Arsenal 1 Man City 0, Man City 1 Arsenal 0
Last five league matches:Man City W W D W D; Arsenal W D D W W
Top scorers(all competitions): Carlos Tevez (Man City) 4; Gervinho & Lukas Podolski (Arsenal) 3
Match odds:H 4-6 A 7-2 D 11-4
Referee:Mike Dean (Wirral).
Newcastle (11) v Norwich (16)
Striker Papiss Cisse and midfielder Cheick Tiote could return for Newcastle. Cisse missed the 0-0 draw with Maritimo through illness, while Tiote has been out since the opening day of the season with a calf injury, but both were expected to train today and could be included. Skipper Fabricio Coloccini could be back on the training pitch on Monday after hamstring trouble but Yohan Cabaye, Jonas Gutierrez, Demba Ba and Hatem Ben Arfa will rejoin the squad.
Norwich manager Chris Hughton has no new injury concerns. Midfielder Elliott Bennett is back in training and Simon Lappin hopes to be back next week after ankle ligament trouble, while full-back Stephen Whittaker, has begun running. Midfielder Jacob Butterfield (knee) could be involved in the Capital One Cup on Wednesday.
Last season:Newcastle 1 Norwich 0, Norwich 4 Newcastle 2
Last five league matches:Newcastle L W L D D; Norwich W L D D D
Top scorers(all competitions): Demba Ba (Newcastle) 3; Wes Hoolahan, Simeon Jackson, Simon Lappin & Robert Snodgrass (Norwich) 1
Match odds:H 8-11 A 10-3 D 13-5
Referee:Neil Swarbrick (Lancashire).
Tottenham (10) v QPR (18)
Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas must choose between Brad Friedel and Hugo Lloris in goal. Emmanuel Adebayor (hamstring) faces a test but Kyle Naughton (foot) should play. Heurelho Gomes (ankle), Scott Parker (Achilles), Jake Livermore (groin), Benoit Assou-Ekotto and Younes Kaboul (both knee) are out.
QPR's defence will be without Anton Ferdinand, Fabio (both hamstring), Stephane Mbia (groin) and Armand Traore (leg). Adel Taarabt is a doubt after picking up a hamstring injury in training today, while fellow midfielder Samba Diakite (personal reasons) and Andrew Johnson (knee) are unavailable.
Last season:QPR 1 Tottenham 0, Tottenham 3 QPR 1
Last five league matches:Tottenham W L D D W; QPR L L D L D
Top scorers(all competitions): Jermain Defoe (Tottenham) 3; Bobby Zamora (QPR) 3
Match odds:H 4-9 A 11-2 D 16-5
Referee:Phil Dowd (Staffordshire).
