All the latest team news ahead of this weekend’s Premier League fixtures.
Saturday, October 15th
Chelsea (3) v Everton (13)
David Luiz could be rested for Chelsea after the Brazil defender only returned to the club on Thursday after playing a full 90 minutes twice for his country in the past week. Fernando Torres serves the second instalment of his three-match ban, goalkeeping understudy Hilario is still recovering from a hip and back complaint, while Michael Essien (knee) is a long-term absentee.
Jack Rodwell should be available for Everton after his red card against Liverpool was rescinded, although the midfielder then sat out England Under-21s' match in Norway as a precaution and will have his condition assessed. Moyes will also check on the fitness of Tim Cahill, who withdrew from the Australia squad during the international break, John Heitinga and Leon Osman, who all have unspecified injury problems.
Last season:Everton 1 Chelsea 0, Chelsea 1 Everton 1
Last five league matches:Chelsea W W L W W; Everton W D W L L
Top scorers(all competitions): Frank Lampard (Chelsea) 5; Royston Drenthe, Apostolos Vellios, Victor Anichebe, Leighton Baines, Marouane Fellaini, Phil Jagielka, Leon Osman & Phil Neville (Everton) 1
Match odds:H 4-11 A 15-2 D 15-4
Referee:Mike Jones (Cheshire).
Liverpool (5) v Manchester United (1)
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard is pushing for his first start since March, having made three substitute appearances since being sidelined by a groin operation seven months ago. Glen Johnson has been declared fit after a hamstring problem forced him to miss the last three matches while centre-back Daniel Agger has recovered from a broken rib sustained last month.
Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic made his first appearance since injuring his calf in the opening-day win at West Brom in Serbia's shock Euro 2012 exit in Slovakia on Tuesday and Sir Alex Ferguson needs to decide if it is enough to warrant being thrown into the Anfield cauldron. Tom Cleverley (foot) and Rafael (shoulder) are still out but otherwise Ferguson reports a fully-fit squad, with Wayne Rooney expected to play despite the shock of suffering his own European Championship woe at the hands of Uefa's disciplinary panel.
Last season:Liverpool 3 Man Utd 1, Man Utd 3 Liverpool 2
Last five league matches:Liverpool W L L W W; Man Utd W W W D W
Top scorers(all competitions): Luis Suarez (Liverpool) 5; Wayne Rooney (Man Utd) 9
Match odds:H 21-10 A 13-10 D 23-10
Referee:Andre Marriner (W Midlands).
Manchester City (2) v Aston Villa (7)
Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero will not be risked as he gets close to fitness after a groin injury, with Tuesday’s Champions League game against Villarreal a more likely return date for the Argentinian. Fellow forward Mario Balotelli has overcome a back problem while Owen Hargreaves could come into contention to make his league debut. Carlos Tevez, the subject of internal disciplinary proceedings, is highly unlikely to feature following his recent club suspension.
Aston Villa's leading scorer Gabriel Agbonlahor is expected to be fit after a back problem forced his substitution during the 2-0 win over Wigan a fortnight ago. Midfielders Stephen Ireland (foot) and Barry Bannan (Achilles) plus defender James Collins (foot) are also expected to be available, but striker Nathan Delfouneso (hamstring) and the on-loan Jermaine Jenas (Achilles) are ruled out.
Last season:Aston Villa 1 Man City 0, Man City 4 Aston Villa 0
Last five league matches:Man City W W D W W; Aston Villa D D D D W
Top scorers:Sergio Aguero (Man City) 8; Gabriel Agbonlahor (Aston Villa) 4
Match odds:H 1-3 A 15-2 D 4-1
Referee:Anthony Taylor (Cheshire).
Norwich (9) v Swansea (10)
Norwich manager Paul Lambert has no fresh injury worries. Andrew Crofts will be included in the squad despite picking up an ankle knock on international duty with Wales. Zak Whitbread is doing well after a hamstring injury but is unlikely to feature, while Elliott Ward, Daniel Ayala and James Vaughan (all knee) are out.
Swansea are boosted by the return to full fitness of midfielder Leon Britton after he missed the home win over Stoke with a back problem. He may have to settle for a place on the bench after Joe Allen, Mark Gower and Wayne Routledge impressed against the Potters. Ashley Williams and captain Garry Monk are again the only available centre-halves as manager Brendan Rodgers continues to await clearance to bring in Greece defender Vangelis Moras on a short-term contract. Alan Tate (broken leg) is a long-term absentee while Steven Caulker will return from knee surgery in the next four to six weeks. Midfielder Kemy Agustien should be back after a hamstring injury in two weeks.
Last season(in the Championship): Norwich 2 Swansea 0; Swansea 3 Norwich 0
Last five league matches:Norwich L L W W L; Swansea D L W L W
Top scorers(all competitions): Anthony Pilkington, Steve Morison, Ritchie De Laet, Grant Holt, Wesley Hoolahan, Leon Barnett & Bradley Johnson (Norwich) 1; Scott Sinclair (Swansea) 2
Match odds:H 6-5 A 23-10 D 23-10
Referee:Jon Moss (W Yorkshire).
QPR (11) v Blackburn (19)
QPR defender Danny Gabbidon has been sidelined since the 3-0 victory at Wolves with a knee injury and is out again for the visit of Rovers. Armand Traore is likely to return to the starting line-up after a one-match ban, while Kieron Dyer (foot) remains out.
Blackburn midfielder Morten Gamst Pedersen returned from international duty with Norway complaining of a tight hamstring while David Goodwillie reported back with food poisoning after Scotland's Euro 2012 qualifier against Spain in midweek. Defender Ryan Nelsen is still unavailable with a long-term knee injury, David Dunn has had an injection in an attempt to alleviate a calf muscle problem while Vince Grella is unavailable because of a hip injury.
Last season:No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:QPR L D W D L; Blackburn L D W L L
Top scorers(all competitions): Joey Barton, DJ Campbell, Alejandro Faurlin & Tommy Smith (QPR) 1; Ruben Rochina (Blackburn) 4
Match odds:H 17-10 A 10-3 D 5-2
Referee:Mark Clattenburg (Tyne & Wear).
Stoke (8) v Fulham (12)
Stoke boss Tony Pulis is waiting to see whether a sugar injection in Matthew Etherington’s back has cured the winger’s injury problems in time for him to play. Kenwyne Jones, Jermaine Pennant and Marc Wilson are also doubtful for the match at the Britannia Stadium as they bid to recover from their own injury problems. Wilson Palacios, Ricardo Fuller and Danny Higginbotham are definitely out, while Pulis will decide whether to rest Glenn Whelan after the midfielder helped the Republic of Ireland reach the play-offs for Euro 2012 over the past week.
Fulham can welcome back Aaron Hughes after his recovery from a groin injury, although manager Martin Jol will not be able to call upon Philippe Senderos and Bryan Ruiz. The former is out for at least a week with a thigh injury, while Ruiz faces the same amount of time on the sidelines with a knee complaint. Kerim Frei (ankle) is also out.
Last season:Fulham 2 Stoke 0, Stoke 0 Fulham 2
Last five league matches:Stoke W W L D L; Fulham L D D D W
Top scorers(all competitions): Kenwyne Jones & Jonathan Walters (Stoke) 3; Andrew Johnson (Fulham) 9
Match odds:H 23-20 A 13-5 D 11-5
Referee:Martin Atkinson (W Yorkshire).
Wigan (18) v Bolton (20)
Winger Albert Crusat sustained a knock in last month’s Carling Cup defeat at Crystal Palace but is available again, as is defender Steve Gohouri who was sent off on his first appearance of the season against Tottenham. The Latics will also check on midfielder James McCarthy, who missed the Republic of Ireland’s win over Armenia on Tuesday due to a bout of tonsillitis, whilst striker Hugo Rodallega is unlikely to be risked despite making good progress in his recovery from a knee injury.
Bolton goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen is expected to be fit after he missed the 5-1 defeat to Chelsea due to a thigh problem. Gael Kakuta was ineligible against his parent club and is now available again, along with Ivan Klasnic and David Wheater, both of whom have completed suspensions.
Last season:Bolton 1 Wigan 1, Wigan 1 Bolton 1
Last five league matches:Wigan W L L L L; Bolton L L L L L
Top scorers(all competitions): Franco Di Santo (Wigan) 3; Ivan Klasnic (Bolton) 3
Match odds:H 5-4 A 11-5 D 23-10
Referee:Mike Dean (Wirral).
Sunday, October 16th
Arsenal (15) v Sunderland (16)
Carl Jenkinson is likely to replace right-back Bacary Sagna after the Frenchman fractured a fibula in the derby defeat at Tottenham and is due to be out for a minimum of three months. Tomas Rosicky should be available after suffering a groin problem on international duty with the Czech Republic. Laurent Koscielny and Johan Djourou are also fit
Abou Diaby is back in training and should be back for the Carling Cup tie against Bolton while Thomas Vermaelen is two weeks away from a return. Goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski has also recovered from a slight groin injury. Sunderland will be without striker Nicklas Bendtner under the terms of his loan agreement with the Gunners, and that could present an opportunity to summer signings Connor Wickham, who has recovered from a groin problem, and Ji Dong-won. Full-back Phil Bardsley completes his four-match ban and Titus Bramble is suspended pending police and club investigations, while Craig Gordon and Fraizer Campbell (both knee) continue to work their way back to fitness.
Last season:Arsenal 0 Sunderland 0, Sunderland 1 Arsenal 1
Last five league matches:Arsenal L W L W L; Sunderland D L W L D
Top scorers(all competitions): Robin van Persie (Arsenal) 5; Sebastian Larsson (Sunderland) 2
Match odds:H 1-2 A 11-2 D 16-5
Referee:Howard Webb (S Yorkshire).
Newcastle (4) v Tottenham (6)
There were fears that France midfielder Yohan Cabaye (ankle) and Senegal striker Demba Ba (knee) might be struggling for Newcastle, but both are fit and available. Danny Guthrie (groin) and Sammy Ameobi (hamstring), however, are doubts after picking up injuries on reserve team duty, while Mike Williamson (broken arm) remains on the sidelines.
Tottenham will give a fitness test to Emmanuel Adebayor after the striker suffered a hamstring injury in the club's win over Arsenal two weeks ago. Rafael van der Vaart should be fit despite a hamstring niggle, but Sandro (calf) and Aaron Lennon (groin) are doubts and Niko Kranjcar is likely to be out for some time after tearing a thigh muscle while on international duty with Croatia. Vedran Corluka also suffered a foot injury with Croatia and will miss this weekend's game, while long-term absentees William Gallas (calf), Michael Dawson (Achilles) and Tom Huddlestone (ankle) remain sidelined.
Last season:Newcastle 1 Tottenham 1, Tottenham 2 Newcastle 0
Last five league matches:Newcastle W D D W W; Tottenham L W W W W
Top scorers(all competitions): Demba Ba (Newcastle) 4; Jermain Defoe (Tottenham) 4
Match odds:H 9-5 A 7-5 D 5-2
Referee:Lee Probert (Wiltshire).
West Brom (17) v Wolves (14)
West Brom striker Peter Odemwingie is battling to overcome a foot problem, with Simon Cox and Somen Tchoyi in contention to replace the Nigerian if he is ruled out. Summer signing Billy Jones is in line to make his first Premier League start at right-back should Steven Reid fail to recover from his fractured hand.
Scottish forward Steven Fletcher suffered a calf injury during training earlier this week and has been ruled out of the match by Wolves boss Mick McCarthy. With Wolves' other experienced striker Sylvan Ebanks-Blake not match-fit after his knee problem, McCarthy could be forced to alter his formation from 4-4-2. But deputy left-back George Elokobi's ankle injury means Stephen Ward is unlikely to be pushed forward into the attacking role he has been employed in on several occasions in a 4-4-1-1 system.
Last season:Wolves 3 West Brom 1, West Brom 1 Wolves 1
Last five league matches:West Brom L W L D D; Wolves D L L L L
Top scorers(all competitions): Shane Long (West Brom) 3; Steven Fletcher (Wolves) 3
Match odds:H 21-20 A 13-5 D 12-5
Referee:Chris Foy (Merseyside).
