Team news from the Premier League
All the team news from around the grounds ahead of Week 22 in the Premier League.
Saturday January 17 3pm
Tottenham head coach Mauricio Pochettino is likely to welcome back a host of first-team regulars for Saturday’s visit of Sunderland.
Spurs made seven changes for their FA Cup third-round replay win over Burnley on Wednesday night and the likes of Harry Kane, Federico Fazio, Christian Eriksen and Hugo Lloris should all return against the Black Cats.
Pochettino also confirmed Emmanuel Adebayor will be in his squad having not played since November whilst Erik Lamela (calf) and Ryan Mason (hamstring) are doubtful with Nabil Bentaleb away on international duty with Algeria.
Provisional squad: Lloris, Vorm, Friedel, Walker, Naughton, Rose, Davies, Dier, Fazio, Kaboul, Yedlin, Vertonghen, Chiriches, Stambouli, Dembele, Paulinho, Capoue, Eriksen, Chadli, Lennon, Townsend, Soldado, Adebayor, Kane.
Jermain Defoe could be handed a Sunderland debut at former club Tottenham on Saturday after completing his move from Toronto.
The 32-year-old England international is included in the squad after signing a three-and-a-half year deal with Jozy Altidore heading in the opposite direction, and will be joined by fit-again frontman Steven Fletcher following his recovery from a groin problem.
However, central midfielder Liam Bridcutt is suspended after his sending-off against Liverpool last weekend and natural replacement Lee Cattermole is still out with a groin injury, as is full-back Anthony Reveillere, who needs another week to shake off an Achilles problem.
Provisional squad: Pantilimon, Mannone, Jones, Van Aanholt, O’Shea, Brown, Vergini, Coates, Rodwell, Gomez, Larsson, Johnson, Buckley, Alvarez, Mavrias, Giaccherini, Wickham, Fletcher, Defoe.
Saturday January 17 3pm
New signing Andrej Kramaric is still waiting on a work permit a week after signing for Leicester, but is in contention for Saturday’s Barclays Premier League visit of Stoke if the red tape is cleared.
Matty James is suspended after his dismissal in last week’s 1-0 win over Aston Villa, whilst Kasper Schmeichel, Matt Upson (both foot), Jeff Schlupp (knee) and Riyad Mahrez (African Nations Cup) are also unavailable.
Boss Nigel Pearson also has severe doubts surrounding Dean Hammond (calf) and Esteban Cambiasso (hip), but Danny Drinkwater is poised to return after missing the last two games with a groin problem.
Provisional squad: Hamer, Schwarzer, Moore, De Laet, Konchesky, Wasilewski, Lawrence, Albrighton, Knockaert, Ulloa, Nugent, Wood, King, Vardy, Drinkwater, Morgan, Taylor-Fletcher, Simpson, Kramaric.
Full-back Erik Pieters is a doubt but midfielder Steven Nzonzi should be available for Stoke’s Barclays Premier League trip to Leicester.
Both players came off at half-time with groin complaints during last Sunday’s 3-0 loss at Arsenal, where Victor Moses returned to the matchday squad as an unused substitute and looks set to make his playing comeback this weekend following a thigh injury.
Forward Mame Biram Diouf remains on African Nations Cup duty with Senegal.
Provisional squad: Begovic, Butland, Shawcross, Wollscheid, Wilson, Huth, Muniesa, Pieters, Bardsley, Cameron, Nzonzi, Adam, Whelan, Ireland, Sidwell, Palacios, Walters, Arnautovic, Crouch, Moses, Bojan.
Saturday January 17 3pm
Burnley boss Sean Dyche is hoping defensive duo Kieran Trippier and Jason Shackell will be fit for Saturday’s clash with Crystal Palace.
Trippier felt his hamstring during Wednesday’s FA Cup loss to Tottenham, a game captain Shackell missed with a calf problem.
Kevin Long (knee), Stephen Ward (ankle) and Matt Taylor (Achilles) are all sidelined.
Provisional squad: Heaton, Cisak, Gilks, Trippier, Mee, Keane, Shackell, Lafferty, Arfield, Marney, Boyd, Jones, Wallace, Kightly, Barnes, Vokes, Ings, Sordell, O’Neill, Reid, Jutkiewicz.
Loan signing Yaya Sanogo could make his Crystal Palace debut in Saturday’s Premier League relegation scrap at Burnley.
The Arsenal striker will face competition to start up front from fit-again Marouane Chamakh, while midfielder James McArthur has beaten his foot problem.
New Palace boss Alan Pardew has no fresh injury concerns, and could hand Wilfried Zaha a start at Turf Moor.
Provisional squad: Speroni, Ward, Dann, Delaney, Kelly, Ledley, Puncheon, McArthur, Bannan, Gayle, Murray, Mariappa, Hangeland, Guediora, Campbell, Zaha, Kennessey, Thomas, Sanogo, Chamakh.
Saturday January 17 3pm
Swansea start life without Wilfried Bony against Chelsea on Saturday with manager Garry Monk having told Bafetimbi Gomis he is now the main striker at the club.
Gomis will lead the forward line against the Barclays Premier League leaders at the Liberty Stadium and on-loan Portuguese striker Nelson Oliveira is now the back-up striker following Bony’s midweek departure to Manchester City.
Swansea are short of midfield numbers as Jonjo Shelvey completes a four-match suspension and Ki Sung-yueng is away on international duty, but Gylfi Sigurdsson (foot) should play and winger Jefferson Montero could make the bench after making a quicker than expected recovery from the hamstring injury he suffered on Boxing Day.
Provisional squad: Fabianski, Rangel, Fernandez, Williams, Taylor, Britton, Carroll, Routledge, Dyer, Sigurdsson, Gomis, Tremmel, Richards, Bartley, Amat, Emnes, Montero, Barrow, Grimes, Oliveira, Tiendalli, Fulton, King.
Thibaut Courtois could return when Chelsea travel to Swansea in the Barclays Premier League on Saturday.
The Belgium goalkeeper has been on the bench for the past two matches after sustaining a finger injury on New Year’s Day against Tottenham, but is able to come back in for Petr Cech.
Chelsea full-back Cesar Azpilicueta remains sidelined with a groin complaint but is set to return to training next week.
Provisional squad: Courtois, Cech, Ivanovic, Luis, Cahill, Terry, Zouma, Ake, Fabregas, Matic, Ramires, Oscar, Mikel, Willian, Hazard, Schurrle, Salah, Remy, Costa, Drogba.
Saturday January 17 3pm
New signing Carles Gil goes straight into the Aston Villa squad for Saturday’s Barclays Premier League clash at home to Liverpool.
Fabian Delph also returns to boost Villa after completing a three-match ban, but Ciaran Clark serves a one-game suspension following his dismissal in last Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Leicester.
Boss Paul Lambert remains without three injured players in Ron Vlaar (knee), Philippe Senderos (thigh) and Libor Kozak (leg).
Provisional squad: Guzan, Given, Lowton, Hutton, Okore, Baker, Delph, Cissokho, Sanchez, Westwood, Cleverley, Richardson, Cole, Grealish, Bacuna, N’Zogbia, Gil, Weimann, Benteke, Agbonlahor.
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard and fellow midfielder Adam Lallana have a chance of being fit for the trip to Aston Villa.
Gerrard was withdrawn at half-time of Saturday’s win at Sunderland with a tight hamstring while Lallana is ahead of schedule in his return from a thigh injury sustained on New Year’s Day.
Forward Raheem Sterling is back in the squad after a being given a week off while youngster Jordon Ibe could join him having been recalled early from a loan spell at Derby.
Provisional squad: Mignolet, Can, Skrtel, Sakho, Markovic, Henderson, Lucas, Moreno, Coutinho, Sterling, Borini, Ward, Lovren, Manquillo, Johnson, Enrique, Gerrard, Lallana, Lambert, Balotelli, Ibe.
Saturday January 17 3pm
Midfielder Niko Kranjcar has recovered from thigh trouble ahead of QPR’s Premier League clash with Manchester United at Loftus Road on Saturday.
Armand Traore will miss out with a toe problem, while Sandro (knee) and Yun Suk-Young (ankle) are both still sidelined.
Unsettled attacking midfielder Adel Taarabt could feature again after coming in from the cold for QPR’s 2-1 defeat at Burnley last weekend.
Provisional squad: Green, Isla, Dunne, Caulker, Hill, Vargas, Henry, Barton, Fer, Taarabt, Austin, Phillips, McCarthy, Onuoha, Mutch, Zamora, Zarate, Kranjcar.
Robin van Persie has a slim chance of playing against QPR on Saturday after Louis van Gaal revealed the Manchester United striker only suffered a “minor” ankle injury against Southampton last weekend.
If Van Persie is ruled out, either Radamel Falcao or James Wilson is likely to come into the starting XI.
Defenders Rafael (cheekbone) and Marcos Rojo (thigh) are in contention after recovering from their respective injuries but wing-back Ashley Young is unavailable because of a hamstring problem.
Provisional squad: De Gea, Lindegaard, Valdes, Vermijl, Blackett, Shaw, Smalling, Evans, Rojo, Jones, McNair, Rafael, Pereira, Blind, Fellaini, Fletcher, Herrera, Valencia, Lingard, Anderson, Carrick, Powell, Januzaj, Di Maria, Mata, Falcao, Rooney, Van Persie, Wilson, W Keane.
Saturday January 17 5.30pm
John Carver is hoping for a series of fitness boosts as he continues in the role of caretaker Newcastle boss.
Midfielders Mehdi Abeid (foot), Siem de Jong and Gabriel Obertan (both thigh) and Rolando Aarons (hamstring) are all on the comeback trail, although none are expected to make the squad for Saturday’s Barclays Premier League clash with Southampton.
Jonas Gutierrez continues his battle for fitness after recovering from testicular cancer, while goalkeepers Rob Elliot (thigh) and Jak Alnwick (shoulder), defender Steven Taylor (Achilles), utility man Ryan Taylor (knee) and striker Adam Armstrong (foot) are still out, while Cheick Tiote and Papiss Cisse are away on African Nations Cup duty.
Provisional squad: Krul, Woodman, Janmaat, Dummett, Santon, Williamson, Coloccini, Streete, Haidara, Satka, Anita, Sissoko, Cabella, Colback, Gouffran, Ameobi, Vuckic, Riviere, Perez.
Victor Wanyama, Morgan Schneiderlin and Toby Alderweireld are amongst those missing when Southampton return to Premier League action at Newcastle.
Wanyama will miss up to five weeks with a hamstring injury sustained in Wednesday’s FA Cup third-round replay at Ipswich – a match fellow defensive midfielder Schneiderlin missed with an adductor strain, which also rules him out of the St James’ Park trip.
Alderweireld is sidelined with a hamstring strain, seeing him join Sam Gallagher and Jay Rodriguez in the treatment room, while Maya Yoshida, Sadio Mane and Emmanuel Mayuka have international commitments.
Provisional squad: Forster, K Davis, Gazzaniga, Clyne, Bertrand, Targett, Gardos, Fonte, McCarthy, S Davis, Ward-Prowse, Cork, Hesketh, Tadic, Reed, Isgrove, Elia, Seager, Long, Pelle.
Sunday January 18 1.30pm
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce is hoping for a double defensive fitness boost ahead of Sunday’s visit of Hull.
Winston Reid (ankle) missed the FA Cup third-round replay win over Everton on Tuesday but is now back in training, as is full-back Guy Demel who has been sidelined since the turn of the year with a muscle problem.
That means only top-scorer Diafra Sakho (back) and Cheikhou Kouyate (international duty) are definite absentees.
Provisional squad: Adrian, Jaaskelainen, Cresswell, O’Brien, Reid, Demel, Collins, Jenkinson, Noble, Song, Nolan, Amalfitano, Downing, Poyet, Jarvis, Vaz Te, Cole, Carroll, Valencia.
Sone Aluko and Gaston Ramirez will return to training ahead of Hull’s trip to West Ham to offer manager Steve Bruce some hope of solving his striker crisis.
Bruce saw strike pair Nikica Jelavic and Abel Hernandez injured in the 1-0 defeat at West Brom last weekend with both out for several weeks.
Andy Robertson (ankle), Liam Rosenior (hamstring), and Mohamed Diame (knee) remain out.
Provisional squad: McGregor, Jakupovic, Harper, Chester, Davies, Maguire, McShane, Figueroa, Bruce, Elmohamady, Livermore, Meyler, Ince, Brady, Quinn, Huddlestone, Aluko, Ramirez, Sagbo.
Sunday January 18 4pm
Manchester City playmaker Samir Nasri faces three to four weeks on the sidelines after suffering a calf injury in training this week.
The problem will rule the Frenchman out of Sunday’s Barclays Premier League clash with his former club Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium.
Midfielder Yaya Toure is on international duty at the African Nations Cup but manager Manuel Pellegrini has declared all other players fit and in contention, including captain Vincent Kompany and strikers Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko.
Provisional squad: Hart, Caballero, Zabaleta, Sagna, Demichelis, Kompany, Mangala, Boyata, Clichy, Kolarov, Milner, Silva, Navas, Sinclair, Fernando, Fernandinho, Lampard, Aguero, Jovetic, Dzeko.
Arsenal defender Kieran Gibbs is likely to return for the Gunners’ visit to reigning Barclays Premier League champions Manchester City on Sunday.
Gibbs has been suffering with a heel problem but is expected to be passed fit, while Theo Walcott and Mesut Ozil are also in contention after coming off the bench against Stoke last Sunday.
Danny Welbeck (thigh), Jack Wilshere (ankle), Mathieu Debuchy (shoulder), Mikel Arterta (ankle) and Abou Diaby (calf) are all ruled out.
Provisional squad: Szczesny, Ospina, Monreal, Chambers, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Bellerin, Coquelin, Ramsey, Flamini, Rosicky, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Cazorla, Walcott, Ozil, Sanchez, Campbell, Akpom, Maitland-Niles.
Monday January 19 8pm
Everton winger Aiden McGeady is suspended for Monday’s visit of West Brom after being sent off in the FA Cup defeat at West Ham.
Defender Tony Hibbert is the closest to a return of those currently injured while Sylvain Distin (groin) also has a chance of making the squad.
Midfielders James McCarthy (hamstring) and Darron Gibson (knee) are not too far away from being available for selection.
Provisional squad: Robles, Coleman, Stones, Jagielka, Baines, Besic, Barry, Barkley, Mirallas, Naismith, Lukaku, Griffiths, Alcaraz, Garbutt, Hibbert, Distin, Oviedo, Kone, McAleny.
Saido Berahino could play for West Brom at Everton despite his expected appearance at North Cheshire Magistrates in Runcorn on Monday.
The striker has been charged with drink-driving but will be in the Baggies’ squad for the trip to Goodison Park.
Jonas Olsson remains sidelined but the defender could be back in two weeks after returning to light training following an Achilles problem and Jason Davidson is with Australia for the Asian Cup.
Provisional squad: Foster, Myhill, Wisdom, Pocognoli, Gamboa, Lescott, McAuley, Dawson, Yacob, Baird, Brunt, Morrison, Mulumbu, Gardner, Dorrans, Blanco, Varela, Sessegnon, Samaras, Ideye, Berahino, Anichebe.
