Arsene Wenger and Manuel Pellegrini confirm that Alexis Sanchez and Sergio Aguero were withdrawn for precautionary reasons ahead of the upcoming internationals. West Brom have worries in defence, whilst Liverpool’s playmaker pulls out of the Brazil squad due to injury earlier today. Here’s our round up of the weekend injury news…
Arsenal
Alexis Sanchez came off after 81 minutes against Manchester United in visible discomfort, though Arsene Wenger was quick to allay fears over any injury, confirming that the wide man is set to feature for Chile in the upcoming internationals:
“He has a little groin problem. Unfortunately he goes to Chile. You cannot stop him from going to Chile and he loves so much to play for his country and he will play against Brazil [on Friday] and Peru [next] Tuesday so the game at home against Brazil he will not want to miss. Hopefully he will come back in good shape.”
Aston Villa
Ciaran Clark sat out the Villains’ 1-0 home defeat to Stoke City after picking up a thigh strain, Tim Sherwood has confirmed.
Chelsea
Goalscorer Willian was replaced by Loic Remy at the 64-minute mark of Chelsea’s home clash against Southampton, with Jose Mourinho later explaining that he took counsel with the club doctor after the Brazilian became ill during the break:
“When the fans boo the Willian decision, I would do that too if I didn’t know he was vomiting at half-time and the doctor said it would be hard for him to carry on.”
Leicester City
Jamie Vardy received a heavy blow to the knee in the first half of Leicester’s trip to Norwich City but was able to carry on and complete the match. Claudio Ranieri sought to allay fears over the form striker’s fitness, insisting that Vardy sustained no serious damage from the collision:
“No, nothing serious. When I saw Vardy on the ground I thought it was a bad injury because Jamie never stays down. When he came close to our bench, the physio said it was his knee, but he was stable and he continued to play.”
Liverpool
Philippe Coutinho has withdrawn from Brazil’s squad ahead of their World Cup qualifiers, with Liverpool’s official site offering no details on the nature of his injury.
Danny Ings confirmed he sustained a minor injury during the Merseyside derby but expects to be fit for upcoming England duties:
”I struggled through the game – I just got my ankle caught in Phil Jagielka’s legs. As the game went on I felt that I couldn’t move as much. It will be assessed but should be fine.”
Manchester City
Following his five-goal frenzy, Sergio Aguero was substituted after 66 minutes at the Etihad. Manuel Pellegrini said that the Argentine marksman received treatment at half time after taking kicks to his back and hamstring in the first period, so the Sky Blues boss elected to exercise caution and manage Aguero’s minutes:
“He had treatment at half time, and to give him more minutes he could have scored but we must be cautious about his fitness, because he could be injured. Last season Kun finished the season without any problem. He is doing a different preparation, so I’m not worried about injuries, you can be injured by kicks of course but muscle injuries he should not have any more.”
Newcastle United
Newcastle United defender Kevin Mbabu picked up a hamstring complaint in the process of trying to prevent Aguero scoring his third goal of an eventual 6-1 thrashing. The Switzerland U19 international is now set to undergo a scan to ascertain the extent of his injury.
Norwich City
Lewis Grabban rolled his ankle during training last week so was ruled out of the Foxes clash, but Alex Neil expects him to be sidelined for longer than a week.
Stoke City
Marko Arnautovic was subbed off 21 minutes from time after scoring the only goal during the Potters’ visit to Villa Park. Mark Hughes played down the reason for the winger’s withdrawal:
“He just cramped up in his back which needed unlocking.”
Meanwhile, Mame Biram Diouf was stretchered off in the second half after damaging his hip. Hughes admitted that the striker is unlikely to team up with Senegal during the international break.
“He’s been in a bit of pain. He’s got an issue with his hip and hopefully hasn’t done anything to the capsule in the joint. But he’s struggling to walk and I’d be surprised if he meets up with his international team because he’s in a lot of pain and can’t weight bear.”
Swansea
Kyle Naughton missed yesterday’s home draw with Spurs due to personal reasons, reports in the local press have confirmed.
Watford
Jose Manuel Jurado missed Watford’s trip to Bournemouth with a hamstring injury, while Ikechi Anya has been given the go ahead to travel with Scotland despite being subbed off with a leg injury.
West Bromwich Albion
Jonny Evans lasted just 24 minutes at Crystal Palace after picking up a hamstring strain, while James Morrison took a blow to his ankle in the second half. Both players underwent scans to determine the extent of their injuries:
“We’ve got a problem with (James) Morrison – he’s felt his ankle. The home nations, we want to help them as much as we can. Me in particular, if I can. Fingers crossed they’ll be okay. If they’re anywhere near it, we’ll give them a chance to play. It will be all down to the doctor. He’ll scan them tomorrow. The scans now are fantastic so he’ll know whether they’re serious injuries or not.”
Elsewhere in the Baggies camp, Gareth McAuley suffered a recurrence of the calf injury that saw him miss the home clash with Everton last Monday. The defender is expected to recover in time to start for Northern Ireland during their World Cup qualifiers.
Darren Fletcher has trained for Scotland earlier today despite picking up a knock during West Brom’s loss at Palace.
West Ham United
Winston Reid was subbed off after 66 minutes at the Stadium of Light, whilst Victor Moses has withdrawn from international duties with Nigeria, claiming a lack of fitness.
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