Jack Wilshere is told to rest and take it easy. Theo Walcott admits Arsenal morale is down and is looking for a boost from the new signings. Andy Carroll lacks fitness, according to Fabio Capello, Sir Alex Ferguson praises Chelsea and- while talking in the third person- Kolo Toure vows to prove the doubters wrong. Here’s this morning’s Scribbles, folks:

Sir Alex Ferguson has talked up Chelsea’s title chances over the weekend. This follows comments from United first-team coach Rene Meulensteen that the Blues were “too old” to maintain a challenge. In an interview with club magazine Inside United Fergie calmed the waters, saying:

They have tremendous experience… there aren’t any young kids in that team. But they don’t have 36 or 37-year-olds like Ryan Giggs. Lampard and Drogba are 33, Anelka is 32 – not dissimilar to Carrick and Rio Ferdinand, and we wouldn’t be saying they are dead and buried, would we? So why should they be? They’ll still be a big threat and we expect them to challenge.

Theo Walcott has remained upbeat after Arsenal’s 8-2 drubbing at Old Trafford. The winger admitted that while morale could be an issue amongst some players after the defeat, he is confident that with the help of their five new arrivals, the Gunners can pick themselves up ahead of next weekend’s home match with Swansea:

A lot of people dropped their heads as soon as that fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth goals went in. Maybe the organisation wasn’t quite there either. The dressing room was completely dead afterwards. It is hard to recover from that result and it could hurt a lot of players.

But Arsenal are a big club. You have to be able to react to those sort of moments. New faces tend to get everyone bubbling. We all have to lift our spirits and hopefully those new signings will do the job.

Charlie Adam has withdrawn from the Scotland squad after picking up a hip knock. The news means he must be considered doubtful for Liverpool’s trip to Stoke this weekend. Bad news for Kenny Dalglish, with the midfielder beginning to hit his stride after the summer move from Blackpool.

Jack Wilshere has been warned not to rush back from injury, after yesterday’s news that the midfielder will be out for two to three months with an ankle problem. Wilshere has been playing through the pain barrier since midway through last season and further exacerbated the problem in pre-season:

It’s massively frustrating, even more frustrating as I had a successful season and felt I could really push on. I’ve had a bit of a setback but I’m still feeling good about the season and hopefully I’ll be back as soon as possible. I spoke to the manager and he just said for me to take my time and come back when I’m ready.’

Having lost John O’Shea to hip and calf injuries, reports today suggest Shay Given is a doubt for the Republic of Ireland’s midweek game with Russia. Ireland No.2 Marco Tardelli explained:

“Yes, it is a problem in the back. I saw him play for Aston Villa against Wolves, then he rested for two days when he came over to Dublin. He played the match against Slovakia and played very well, he finished the match but now there is a little problem.”

Kolo Toure is fit and available for selection after serving his six-month ban for failing a drugs test. The Ivorian’s return will place question marks against Joleon Lescott’s game time at the heart of the Man City back-four and he is determined to make up for lost time:

I want to show all the people that think Kolo Toure needed tablets, water tablets, to be a better footballer. I will give 100% in every single game to show those people I don’t need water tablets to be a strong man. I’ve been in this league for almost 10 years now, being unbeatable with Arsenal, doing a lot of good games. I just want to show them and that’s what I will do.

Having been dropped from Liverpool’s last game, Andy Carroll was warned by Fabio Capello that he lacks fitness and needs to get into better shape. The forward has had a poor start to the season, with his career somewhat stalling since the January move from Newcastle:

Andy didn’t play the last game with Liverpool and probably he is not at the top. Also he is big. He needs to play games, games, games. It’s the start of the season. In this moment, some players are really good and run a lot. In the last 20 minutes [on Friday] we had everything – ball possession, chances to score, because we were fresh. We were winning 3-0 but we were fresh. When these players…like Andy, will be fit, at the top of their form, they will be important.

David Moyes doesn’t have his trouble to seek right now and yesterday saw another problem arise for the Everton boss. Victor Anichebe looks to have suffered a groin injury in Nigeria’s 2-0 win over Madagascar and further limits the Toffees forward options, after the departures of Yakubu and Jermaine Beckford in the transfer window. Nigeria boss Samson Siasia said:

“It is very sad for him, He was huge for us today. he did all the right things, played well and unfortunately, had to come off in the last three minutes with an injury. But that’s football. It’s very unfortunate, but I hope he gets well soon so he can continue to feature for his club.

That pitch was not very good and we are lucky our players did not get serious injuries. Hopefully, Anichebe will be fine after getting some medical attention. Our thoughts will be with him.