noelyf
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SATURDAY 10 DECEMBER
Arsenal v Everton 3pm
Arsenal will be without Andre Santos for tomorrow's Barclays Premier League game against Everton after the Brazil full-back suffered an ankle injury in the midweek Champions League defeat at Olympiacos.
Goalkeepers Lukasz Fabianski (knee) and Vito Mannone (shoulder) also picked up injuries in Greece, so veteran Manuel Almunia will make a rare return to the first-team squad.
Captain Robin van Persie was rested in midweek, along with several other key men, but midfielders Abou Diaby (hamstring) and Ryo Miyaichi (ankle) are still out, along with defenders Carl Jenkinson (back), Kieran Gibbs (hernia) and Bacary Sagna (ankle), while midfielder Jack Wilshere (ankle) is not expected back until the new year.
Arsenal squad: Szczesny, Koscielny, Djourou, Mertesacker, Vermaelen, Song, Ramsey, Arteta, Gervinho, Walcott, Van Persie, Almunia, Miguel, Benayoun, Frimpong, Arshavin, Chamakh, Coquelin, Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Everton boss David Moyes will once again be without midfielder Jack Rodwell.
Moyes has revealed that Rodwell, who only made his comeback from a rib injury last weekend as a substitute in the 1-0 loss to Stoke, will not feature at the Emirates Stadium due to a hamstring problem he picked up in training on Thursday.
Fellow midfield men Leon Osman (hamstring) and Royston Drenthe (foot) will be assessed ahead of kick-off, while Moyes is hopeful that striker Louis Saha will be able to return to action after a thigh complaint.
Everton squad: Howard, Hibbert, Heitinga, Jagielka, Baines, Coleman, Fellaini, Osman, Drenthe, Bilyaletdinov, Cahill, Barkley, Saha, Vellios, Mucha, Mustafi, Stracqualursi, McFadden, Gueye, Distin, Neville.
Bolton Wanderers v Aston Villa 3pm
Bolton centre-back Gary Cahill is available for tomorrow's clash with his old club Aston Villa at the Reebok Stadium after his red card from the 3-0 defeat to Tottenham was rescinded.
Fellow defender David Wheater misses out again as he serves the second game of a four-match ban for his sending off in the previous fixture, a 2-0 loss to Everton.
Midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker - another former Villa man - is a doubt due to a hamstring problem.
Bolton squad: Jaaskelainen, Steinsson, Boyata, Cahill, Knight, Eagles, Robinson, Muamba, Petrov, K Davies, Klasnic, Tuncay, Bogdan, M Davies, Pratley, Ngog, Blake, Kakuta, Reo-Coker.
Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan will make his first League start of the season in place of Shay Given, who is sidelined for a month with a hamstring injury.
Captain Stiliyan Petrov and Stephen Ireland will be in contention to replace on-loan Tottenham midfielder Jermaine Jenas, who has been ruled out for the season after surgery to his Achilles.
Defender Eric Lichaj (hip) is Villa's only other casualty and is poised to return to training in the new year.
Villa squad: Guzan, Hutton, Cuellar, Collins, Dunne, Clark, Warnock, Beye, Herd, Delph, Bannan, Petrov, Ireland, Albrighton, Bent, Heskey, Agbonlahor, N'Zogbia, Weimann, Marshall.
Liverpool v QPR 3pm
Central midfield is once again a concern for manager Kenny Dalglish.
Jay Spearing, who was expected to provide the long-term replacement for Lucas Leiva after the Brazilian's season was ended by a cruciate knee ligament, begins a three-match suspension after his red card at Fulham on Monday.
Captain Steven Gerrard is still recovering from an ankle infection so Jordan Henderson could start in his favoured central position, although the in-form Jonjo Shelvey has continued to impress following his recall from a loan spell at Blackpool.
Liverpool squad: Reina, Johnson, Agger, Skrtel, Enrique, Kuyt, Adam, Henderson, Downing, Suarez, Bellamy, Doni, Kelly, Carragher, Coates, Shelvey, Coady, Rodriguez, Carroll.
QPR playmaker Adel Taarabt will undergo a late fitness test.
Taarabt has a thigh strain and is a doubt for the trip to Anfield.
Matt Connolly (ankle), Kieron Dyer (foot) and DJ Campbell (foot) returned to training this week and have an outside chance of being involved.
QPR squad: Cerny, Putnins, Hall, Gabbidon, Taarabt, Traore, Bothroyd, Faurlin, Barton, Orr, Buzsaky, Young, Smith, Helguson, Wright-Phillips, Ferdinand, Puncheon.
Manchester United v Wolves 3pm
Alex Ferguson is hoping Dimitar Berbatov recovers from an ankle injury.
Skipper Nemanja Vidic (knee) has been ruled out for the rest of the season and other long-term casualties include Javier Hernandez and Tom Cleverley (both ankle), Michael Owen (thigh), Anderson (knee) and Brazilian twins Rafael and Fabio, who were both hurt in the Carling Cup defeat to Crystal Palace.
Michael Carrick returns from suspension and should start in midfield, with Phil Jones reverting to a defensive position.
United squad: De Gea, Lindegaard, Amos, Evans, Smalling, Ferdinand, Evra, Jones, Fryers, Cole, Fletcher, Carrick, Young, Valencia, Park, Gibson, Nani, Giggs, Macheda, Rooney, Welbeck, Berbatov, Diouf.
Wolves midfielder and former captain Karl Henry is available after serving a one match suspension.
Henry was unavailable for the 2-1 home success over Sunderland last weekend after incurring five bookings this season.
Central defender Jody Craddock is rated doubtful to overcome a hamstring injury suffered against the Black Cats.
His likely absence could mean a recall for skipper Roger Johnson who was dropped against Sunderland after a run of poor form.
Wolves squad: Hennessey, De Vries, Stearman, Zubar, Johnson, Craddock, Berra, Ward, Hammill, O'Hara, Hunt, Henry, Guedioura, Jarvis, Doyle, Doherty, Elokobi, Milijas, Edwards, Ebanks-Blake, Fletcher, Doherty.
Norwich City v Newcastle United 3pm
Centre-half Zak Whitbread is in contention to return to Norwich's starting XI having recovered from a hamstring problem.
On-loan Manchester United defender Ritchie de Laet (back) remains out.
Striker James Vaughan is on course for a return in the new year from his knee problem, along with centre-back Elliott Ward (knee).
Norwich squad: Ruddy, Tierney, Whitbread, Martin, Naughton, Crofts, Johnson, Pilkington Bennett, Hoolahan, Morison, Rudd, Barnett, Fox, Holt, Surman, Wilbraham, Jackson, Ayala.
Newcastle boss Alan Pardew has defensive problems.
Steven Taylor (Achilles) and Mike Williamson (broken arm and ankle) are definitely out while Fabricio Coloccini (thigh) is very doubtful, meaning 21-year-old Hungarian Tamas Kadar could make his first appearance of the season.
Midfielders Danny Guthrie (groin) and Cheik Tiote (knee) are also sidelined but winger Jonas Gutierrez is available again after suspension.
Newcastle squad: Krul, Elliot, Simpson, R. Taylor, Santon, Ferguson, Perch, Cabaye, Gosling, Obertan, Ben Arfa, Sammy Ameobi, Abeid, Vuckic, Smith, Ba, Best, Shola Ameobi, Lovenkrands, Kadar, Gutierrez.
Swansea City v Fulham 3pm
Swansea will be without midfielder Joe Allen. Wales international Allen is suspended after being sent off in last weekend's 4-2 defeat at Blackburn and manager Brendan Rodgers must decide whether to replace him with Luke Moore, Wayne Routledge or Kemy Agustien.
Striker Danny Graham is available again after an Achilles problem kept him out at Ewood Park, with defender Steven Caulker another man back in contention, but Angel Rangel (ankle) remains sidelined.
Swansea squad: Vorm, Williams, Taylor, Caulker, Britton, Orlandi, Graham, Sinclair, Dyer, Dobbie, Routledge, Monk, Lita, Moore, Bessone, Tremmel, Agustien, Gower, Richards, Moras.
Danny Murphy and Simon Davies could be surprise inclusions for Fulham.
Skipper Murphy looked set to miss the match after picking up an ankle knock against former club Liverpool on Monday, but is in contention after making a rapid recovery.
Fulham boss Martin Jol will check on Murphy's fitness today along with fellow midfielder Davies, who could make his first league appearance of the season after a long-term knee complaint.
Winger Damien Duff (calf) and defender Chris Baird (personal reasons) are out.
Fulham squad: Schwarzer, Etheridge, Riise, Kelly, Hangeland, Hughes, Dembele, Briggs, Kasami, Davies, Murphy, Gecov, Etuhu, Ruiz, Dempsey, Frei, Johnson, Zamora, Sa.
West Bromwich Albion v Wigan Athletic 3pm
West Brom head coach Roy Hodgson has no fresh injury concerns.
Midfield playmaker Zoltan Gera is the only major casualty with the knee injury which will sideline him for the remainder of the season.
Hodgson will be hoping five-goal top scorer Shane Long, who netted in last weekend's 1-1 draw at QPR, can continue to play and defy his current groin problem.
West Brom squad: Foster, Fulop, Reid, Jones, Jara, Olsson, McAuley, Dawson, Tamas, Mattock, Shorey, Scharner, Brunt, Morrison, Mulumbu, Dorrans, Thomas, Tchoyi, Cox, Odemwingie, Long.
Wigan defender Antolin Alcaraz returns from suspension.
The Paraguay international has now served his three-match ban for spitting at Wolves' Richard Stearman and his availability means Latics are back at full strength.
Fellow defender Emmerson Boyce will again push for inclusion following injury while manager Roberto Martinez must decide whether to restore striker Hugo Rodallega to the side.
Wigan squad: Al Habsi, Boyce, Caldwell, Alcaraz, Figueroa, Watson, Diame, Moses, Gomez, McCarthy, Di Santo, Jones, Stam, Van Aanholt, McArthur, Lopez, Thomas, Sammon, Maloney, Crusat, Gohouri, Rodallega, McCarthy, Pollitt.
SUNDAY 11 DECEMBER
Sunderland v Blackburn Rovers 1.30pm
New Sunderland manager Martin O'Neill has several injury concerns ahead of his opening game against fellow strugglers Blackburn at the Stadium of Light on Sunday.
Striker Nicklas Bendtner has not trained all week because of a groin problem while defender Phil Bardsley has suffered a recurrence of an ankle injury, but O'Neill is hopeful both will be available.
Midfielder Lee Cattermole misses out through suspension after picking up five yellow cards along with striker Connor Wickham (knee) and goalkeepers Simon Mignolet (fractured nose and eye socket) and Craig Gordon (knee).
Sunderland squad: Westwood, Carson, Brown, Bardsley, Richardson, Turner, Laing, Gardner, Vaughan, Larsson, Colback, Elmohamady, Meyler, Sessegnon, Bendtner, Ji, McClean, Cook, Egan, Noble, Bramble.
Martin Olsson will have a fitness test tomorrow to see if he can make the Blackburn squad for Sunday's match at Sunderland.
Olsson has been out with a hamstring and Ruben Rochina is also doubtful. He suffered a muscle injury and has been recovering this week after having his wisdom teeth removed.
Steven Nzonzi serves the final game of his three-match suspension while Ryan Nelsen is still short of match fitness.
Blackburn squad: Robinson, Bunn, Olsson, Samba, Lowe, Dann, Salgado, Givet, Hanley, Rochina, Pedersen, Petrovic, Dunn, Hoilett, Yakubu, Goodwillie, Formica, Roberts, Vukcevic, Slew, Blackman, Henley.
Stoke City v Tottenham Hotspur 4pm
Stoke manager Tony Pulis could welcome back midfielders Jermaine Pennant and Rory Delap.
The pair missed last weekend's win at Everton with minor knocks but could come back into contention for the clash with Harry Redknapp's in-form side.
Andy Wilkinson injured his back in training yesterday and a late decision will be made over his participation, while goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen is fine after sustaining mild concussion at Goodison Park.
Stoke squad: Sorensen, Huth, Wilkinson, Wilson, Shawcross, Shotton, Woodgate, Whelan, Etherington, Whitehead, Walters, Crouch, Begovic, Upson, Delap, R Fuller, Palacios, Jerome, Jones.
Tottenham will gave fitness tests to Jermain Defoe (hamstring) and Gareth Bale (foot) before deciding whether they travel with the squad to face Stoke.
Rafael van der Vaart has recovered from his hamstring injury but Ledley King is a doubt with the knee problem that ruled him out of last weekend's win against Bolton.
Sandro is struggling with a groin problem while long-term absentees Michael Dawson (Achilles), Tom Huddlestone (ankle) and Niko Kranjcar (thigh) remain out.
Tottenham squad: Gomes, Friedel, Cudicini, Bale, Kaboul, Corluka, Bassong, Rose, Gallas, King, Walker, Assou-Ekotto, Parker, Modric, Livermore, Townsend, Carroll, Fredericks, Lennon, Falque, Sandro, Pienaar, Pavlyuchenko, Defoe, Dos Santos, Adebayor, Van der Vaart, Kane.
MONDAY 12 DECEMBER
Chelsea v Manchester City 8pm
Manchester City right-back Micah Richards looks set to miss Monday's trip to Chelsea.
Richards was ruled out of Wednesday's Champions League win over Bayern Munich with a calf injury and may not shake off the problem in time.
Central defender Stefan Savic played in his position in midweek but Pablo Zabaleta is now fit and could slot back in, but left-back Aleksandar Kolarov (groin) remains out.
City squad: Hart, Pantilimon, Zabaleta, Kompany, Lescott, Savic, K Toure, Clichy, Johnson, Milner, Y Toure, De Jong, Barry, Hargreaves, Nasri, Silva, Dzeko, Balotelli, Aguero.
Chelsea will be without the suspended David Luiz.
Defender Luiz picked up his fifth domestic yellow card of the season in Saturday's 3-0 win at Newcastle and serves a one-match ban.
Right-back Jose Bosingwa has therefore made a timely recovery from the adductor strain that caused him to miss Tuesday's Champions League success against Valencia, Josh McEachran is back in training after an ankle knock, while fellow midfielder Michael Essien is expected to return from knee surgery early next year.
Chelsea squad: Cech, Bosingwa, Ivanovic, Terry, Cole, Mikel, Romeu, Ramires, Lampard, McEachran, Mata, Malouda, Meireles, Torres, Drogba, Kalou, Sturridge, Lukaku, Turnbull.
