Preview/Hertha Berlin v Fulham: Fulham were rocked by a fresh injury blow on the eve of their third round, first leg showdown with Hertha Berlin in Germany.

Barry Hayles, already sidelined for a fortnight with pain around vertebrae in his neck, could need an operation to resolve the problem and could face months out of action.

The good news for boss Jean Tigana is that Luis Boa Morte is hopeful of recovering from his thigh problem, although Sylvain Legwinski is ruled out with a back injury.

Forward Louis Saha, recovering from his hamstring operation, is expected to be out until the start of February.

FULHAM (from): Van der Sar, Finnan, Knight, Goma, Brevett, Goldbaek, Clark, Djetou, Davis, Malbranque, Sava, Inamoto, Marlet, Melville, Boa Morte, Taylor.

Hertha Berlin v Fulham UEFA Cup (kick-off, 5.0)