Soccer:All the latest team news ahead of this weekend's Premier League fixtures.
Saturday, October 1st
Aston Villa (8) v Wigan (15)
On-loan Tottenham midfielder Jermaine Jenas is in contention to make his Aston Villa debut after recovering from a thigh problem. Record signing Darren Bent has shaken off a groin injury while fellow striker Emile Heskey is also in the frame after a recent hamstring setback. Villa boss Alex McLeish will give a late fitness test to defender James Collins who suffered an ankle knock against QPR last weekend. Carlos Cuellar, Chris Herd and Eric Lichaj remain sidelined.
Wigan defender Emmerson Boyce is close to a recall having recovered from the hamstring problem which has kept him out of the last two league matches. His return would be welcome as Steve Gohouri is suspended having been sent off against Tottenham last week. Fellow defender Antolin Alcaraz (thigh) and striker Hugo Rodallega (knee) are unavailable.
Last season:Aston Villa 1 Wigan 1, Wigan 1 Aston Villa 2
Last five league matches:Aston Villa W D D D D; Wigan D W L L L
Top scorers:Gabriel Agbonlahor (Aston Villa) 3; Franco Di Santo (Wigan) 3
Match odds:H 6-10 A 9-2 D 3-1
Referee:Mark Clattenburg (Tyne & Wear).
Blackburn (18) v Man City (2)
Blackburn manager Steve Kean is still waiting on the fitness of defenders Scott Dann and Michel Salgado ahead of tomorrow’s visit of Manchester City. Neither player has trained this week and the pair will undergo late tests to determine whether they will be able to face City at Ewood Park. Martin Olsson is definitely out through suspension following his red card at Newcastle but Gael Givet has recovered from a knock.
City boss Roberto Mancini may give Edin Dzeko a starting role after the striker apologised for his angry reaction to being substituted against Bayern Munich in midweek. With Carlos Tevez suspended by the club following his apparent refusal to come off the bench in Munich, the Bosnian is likely to partner Sergio Aguero in attack.
Last season:Blackburn 0 Man City 1, Man City 1 Blackburn 1
Last five league matches:Blackburn L L D W L; Man City W W W D W
Top scorers:Ruben Rochina (Blackburn) 4; Sergio Aguero (Man City) 8
Match odds:H 4-1 A 8-13 D 16-5
Referee:Phil Dowd (Staffordshire).
Everton (11) v Liverpool (5)
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard may have to settle for a place on the bench again in tomorrow’s 216th Merseyside derby. The England midfielder has played just 25 minutes after a six-month lay-off from a groin operation. Defenders Glen Johnson (hamstring) and Daniel Agger (rib) will not feature — although the latter has returned to training — while forward Dirk Kuyt is pushing for a recall at the expense of Jordan Henderson.
Everton manager David Moyes believes Tim Cahill should be fit. Cahill sustained severe bruising to his shin after seemingly being stamped on by Vincent Kompany during the 2-0 defeat by Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium last weekend.
Last season:Liverpool 2 Everton 2, Everton 2 Liverpool 0
Last five league matches:Everton L W D W L; Liverpool W W L L W
Top scorers:Victor Anichebe, Leighton Baines, Royston Drenthe, Marouane Fellaini, Phil Jagielka, Phil Neville, Leon Osman & Apostolos Vellios (Everton) 1; Luis Suarez (Liverpool) 4
Match odds:H 19-10 A 29-20 D 9-4
Referee:Martin Atkinson (W Yorkshire).
Man Utd (1) v Norwich (9)
Wayne Rooney, Javier Hernandez and Jonny Evans will all be back from injury for Manchester United. Chris Smalling (groin), Nemanja Vidic (ankle) and Tom Cleverly (foot) are still missing but could return after the international break.
Norwich will be without striker James Vaughan, who is set to be out for up to four months with a knee injury. Centre-back Zak Whitbread is still recovering from his hamstring problem. Defenders Elliott Ward and Dani Ayala (both knee) remain out, while young forward Oli Johnson is set for a spell on the sidelines after ankle surgery.
Last season:No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:Man Utd W W W W D; Norwich D L L W W
Top scorers:Wayne Rooney (Man Utd) 9; Leon Barnett, Ritchie De Laet, Grant Holt, Wesley Hoolahan, Bradley Johnson, Steve Morison & Anthony Pilkington (Norwich) 1
Match odds:H 1-5 A 11-1 D 6-1
Referee:Stuart Attwell (Warwickshire).
Sunderland (14) v West Brom (19)
Sunderland defender Titus Bramble will miss tomorrow’s clash after being suspended by the club. The 30-year-old will not train or play with his team-mates until an investigation into allegations of sexual assault and possession of a class A drug has been completed. Midfielder Sebastian Larsson has been playing after having pain-killing injections in a broken toe and his condition will be assessed, while striker Connor Wickham (groin) is a doubt and Craig Gordon and Fraizer Campbell (both knee) continue to work their way back to fitness.
West Brom central defender Gabriel Thomas is available after completing a three-game suspension. But he faces a battle to regain his place following an impressive performance by summer signing Gareth McAuley in last weekend's goalless home draw with Fulham. Defender Craig Dawson is expected to recover from the illness which meant he was unable to train on Thursday, but midfielder Zoltan Gera and striker Marc-Antoine Fortune are still sidelined through injury.
Last season:Sunderland 2 West Brom 3, West Brom 1 Sunderland 0
Last five league matches:Sunderland L D L W L; West Brom L L W L D
Top scorers:Sebastian Larsson (Sunderland) 2; Marc-Antoine Fortune & Shane Long (West Brom) 2
Match odds:H 5-4 A 11-5 D 23-10
Referee:Lee Mason (Lancashire).
Wolves (12) v Newcastle (4)
Defender Richard Stearman is Wolves’ major new fitness doubt. Stearman suffered a toe injury during the 2-1 defeat against Liverpool at Anfield and was substituted at half-time. If he is ruled out, 19-year-old Matt Doherty will start against the Magpies. Striker Steven Fletcher has recovered from the groin problem which restricted him to a second-half substitute role against the Reds. Jody Craddock, Ronald Zubar, Kevin Foley and Sylvan Ebanks-Blake are still unavailable through injury.
Davide Santon will be included in the Newcastle squad for the first time. The 20-year-old Italian played 90 minutes for the reserves in midweek after having fluid drained from his knee and could make his senior debut at Molineux. However, striker Shola Ameobi will miss out once again with a shoulder injury, while Alan Smith (hamstring) and Mike Williamson (broken arm) remain on the sidelines.
Last season:Newcastle 4 Wolves 1, Wolves 1 Newcastle 1
Last five league matches:Wolves W D L L L; Newcastle W W D D W
Top scorers:Sylvan Ebanks-Blake & Steven Fletcher (Wolves) 2; Demba Ba & Leon Best (Newcastle) 3
Match odds:H 11-8 A 2-1 D 9-4
Referee:Mark Halsey (Lancashire).
Sunday, October 2nd
Bolton (20) v Chelsea (3)
Bolton manager Owen Coyle is already without a number of long-term injured, with the casualty list compounded this week when it was announced midfielder Stuart Holden faces another six months on the sidelines with a knee problem. To add to his woes, on-loan Gael Kakuta is ineligible as he cannot face his parent club, David Wheater and Ivan Klasnic are suspended, and goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen is doubtful with a leg knock.
Daniel Sturridge could return to the Chelsea line-up. The forward missed Saturday's win over Swansea with a knee injury and also sat out Wednesday night's Champions League draw at Valencia, but he is fit to return to the club where he spent the second half of last season on loan. Fernando Torres starts a three-match ban, goalkeeping understudy Hilario is still a week or two away from recovering from hip and back complaints, while Michael Essien (knee) is a long-term absentee.
Last season:Bolton 0 Chelsea 4, Chelsea 1 Bolton 0
Last five league matches:Bolton L L L L L; Chelsea W W W L W
Top scorers:Ivan Klasnic (Bolton) 3; Frank Lampard, Romelu Lukaku, Juan Mata, Ramires & Fernando Torres (Chelsea) 2
Match odds:H 5-1 A 11-20 D 3-1
Referee:Peter Walton (Northamptonshire).
Fulham (17) v QPR (10)
QPR defender Armand Traore is supended following his red card against Aston Villa last weekend. Danny Gabbidon looks certain to miss out again with a knee injury picked up in Rangers’ Barclays Premier League win over Wolves almost a fortnight ago, while the game comes soon for Jamie Mackie, who this week played in a friendly for the first time since suffering a double leg break in January. Midfielder Kieron Dyer also remains sidelined with a foot problem.
Fulham forwards Bobby Zamora and Mousa Dembele are both available after recovering from illness. The Cottagers will give Aaron Hughes (knee) a fitness test tomorrow and Matthew Briggs is also a doubt with a bruised ankle that he suffered in last night's Europa League win against Odense.
Last season:No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:Fulham L L D D D; QPR W L D W D
Top scorers:Andrew Johnson, Danny Murphy, Bryan Ruiz & Bobby Zamora (Fulham) 4; Joey Barton, DJ Campbell, Alejandro Faurlin & Tommy Smith (QPR) 1
Match odds:H 1-1 A 14-5 D 12-5
Referee:Andre Marriner (W Midlands).
Swansea (16) v Stoke (7)
Midfielder Leon Britton is the major fitness concern for Swansea manager Brendan Rodgers. Britton is still struggling with the back complaint that saw him withdrawn early against Chelsea last weekend. Striker Danny Graham could come back into the starting line-up in place of Leroy Lita but midfielder Ferrie Bodde is set to undergo yet another operation in the latest setback to his recovery from a series of knee injuries.
Stoke winger Matthew Etherington will undergo a fitness test ahead of the match. Etherington limped out of last night's 2-1 Europa League Group E victory over Besiktas with a dead leg. Defender Jonathan Woodgate is available again having missed that game because he is not part of Stoke's squad for Europe, and the rested Asmir Begovic is set to return in goal in place Thomas Sorensen.
Last season:No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:Swansea D D L W L; Stoke D W W L D
Top scorers:Nathan Dyer, Leroy Lita, Scott Sinclair & Ashley Williams (Swansea) 1; Kenwyne Jones (Stoke) 3
Match odds:H 17-10 A 17-10 D 21-10
Referee:Mike Jones (Cheshire).
Tottenham (6) v Arsenal (13)
Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp will revert to his first-choice line-up meaning Emmanuel Adebayor is in line to face his former club. Redknapp, who made 10 changes to his team for yesterday’s Europa League win over Shamrock Rovers, will give Aaron Lennon a fitness test after he had to come off with a stiff groin last night. William Gallas (calf), Michael Dawson (Achilles) and Tom Huddlestone (ankle) are out but Steven Pienaar is available to play his first game of the season after overcoming a groin problem.
Arsenal will give late fitness tests to England winger Theo Walcott (knee) and Gervinho (hamstring), but central defender Laurent Koscielny (ankle) is out. Johan Djourou (hamstring) also remains sidelined but Yossi Benayoun (thigh) and Sebastien Squillaci both return to the squad after training this weekend.
Last season:Tottenham 3 Arsenal 3, Arsenal 2 Tottenham 3
Last five league matches:Tottenham L L W W W; Arsenal L L W L W
Top scorers:Emmanuel Adebayor & Jermain Defoe (Tottenham) 3; Robin van Persie (Arsenal) 5
Match odds:H 23-20 A 11-5 D 5-2
Referee:Mike Dean (Wirral).
