The papers are filled with big-name injuries and this time nobody can blame it all on Stoke. Instead it’s the though of representing their country that have found a host of Premiership players reaching for twinges in various parts of their body. Frank Lampard was the latest to cry off today with a rib injury, leaving Scott Parker and Jimmy Bullard to form the England central midfield against Germany.
It seems nobody wants to turn out in a midweek international these days, not when there are three points to play for at the weekend. All these knocks and scrapes can prove disconcerting stuff for us fantasy managers so let’s sift through some of the ailments on offer and sort the obvious sicknotes from the mildly concerning knocks…
Let’s start with our Frank. He has been ruled out of the Germany game today after undergoing a scan on a rib injury suffered at West Brom on Saturday. Presumably then he is an early doubt for the home game with Newcastle but not surprisingly, I’m sceptical on the seriousness of this latest knock despite Capello’s insistence that the injury is 100% legit.
Lampard’s injury record for Chelsea is excellent – it’s very rare that he’s sidelined. His last injury was almost a year ago, he completed the 90 minutes at the Hawthorns and it seems just a little to convenient that it’s the week of an international friendly that Lampard should suffer a rare injury blow. I’m sure he came out of the game with some bruising but surely that won’t be enough to keep him from the field with three points at stake against Newcastle.
Lampard is a strong alternative to Ronaldo as FPL captain this week but we’ll need to be 100% sure to back him over the United man. I’ll keep you posted on this one but I’m optimistic.
John Terry trained today with England today but does remain a doubt for Wednesday’s game with a foot injury that saw him subbed with five minutes to go at the Hawthorns. It’s a brave man who backs John Terry’s luck with injuries but if today’s reports ring true, then the weekend shouldn’t be a problem provided the England skipper comes through Wednesday’s game. Chelsea team-mates Joe and Ashley Cole also miss out – the latter will certainly be in the frame for the Newcastle game however, having been on the bench at the Hawthorns.
Steven Gerrard looks the most unlikely to figure at the weekend; the Liverpool skipper picked up a groin injury at Bolton at the weekend and is said to be sidelined for 10 days. Capello insisted on Gerrard reported for duty today but today’s reports suggest that Rafa has already ruled him out of the England game and Liverpool’s clash with Fulham.
“We had to do a scan after the Bolton game because Steven said he had some pain in his groin…It is not a massive problem and we hope he will be ready to return in seven to 10 days,” explained Rafa.
With Liverpool facing Marseille in the Champions League next week, it would appear that Gerrard is unlikely to be risked against Fulham at Anfield, with Torres likely to be recalled and Alonso a more than capable deputy alongside Mascherano.
Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney are also out of Wednesday’s game having missed the home game with Stoke. Rooney was suffering from a chest infection so his chances of turning out at Villa look strong. Ferdinand’s ongoing back problems could be more of an issue but over a week of rest should be enough to see him return at Villa Park.
It’s not all about England of course – the Republic of Ireland’s Robbie Keane is another big name who has dropped out of international duty this week – he’ll miss the friendly with Poland with a shoulder injury. With Torres now fit, Keane will need to maintain his fitness to hold down a place in Liverpool starting lineup. I see him back in contention for the Fulham game then. With Gerrard set to miss out against, Keane should be okay for a starting role in a 4-4-2, although Kuyt is an alternative with Benayoun or Babel operating on the right of midfield.
As for Wales, they will be without Wigan’s Koumas with a groin injury that kept him out of the game at Newcastle at the weekend, while Fulham’s Simon Davies will miss the friendly with Denmark with an Achilles injury. The midfielder notched his first goal and assist against Spurs and could even offer value at the low-to-mid price bracket. He looks a genuine doubt for the Anfield trip however.
Finally United’s Darren Fletcher is out of Scotland’s friendly with Maradona’s Argentina. He suffered a knee injury in the win over Stoke but with Scholes close to a return for Ferguson, Fletcher will pull out all the stops to make the Villa Park game this weekend.