Wayne Rooney and Nani are back in the United squad ahead of the trip to Chelsea. Anders Lindegaard is out for over a month with an ankle injury. Steven Gerrard returns for Liverpool, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is a doubt for Arsenal, Chris Samba is out of the Blackburn squad, while Jamie O’Hara comes back into contention for Wolves.
Blackburn will travel to the Emirates tomorrow without the services of Chris Samba. The Rovers skipper is 100% fit for selection but, after failing to engineer a move away from Ewood Park during the January transfer window, he is not being considered for the first-team at present. While this hardly helps the club’s battle to stave off relegation, it’s great news for those of us who are intent on handing Robin Van Persie the armband this weekend. With the media pre-warned that questions on Samba were off-limits at his press conference, beleaguered boss Steve Kean would only confirm:
I’m prepared to say he’s fit and he’s available but he’s not in the squad for the Arsenal game. I’d rather speak about people who are available to play against Arsenal. Chris has trained well today but he’s not going to be in this squad.
Arsene Wenger revealed Alex Oxlade Chamberlain was his only injury concern ahead of the Rovers showdown. The youngster faces a fitness test today, with his manager describing the issue as “a little problem”. Wenger also admitted he was considering some changes to his side, after a disappointing draw at Bolton last time out extended Arsenal’s winless league run to four matches.
Sir Alex Ferguson hopes to have four players back for Man United’s trip to Chelsea. The United boss revealed Wayne Rooney, Nani, Ashley Young and Tom Cleverley will all be in the squad for Sunday’s showdown. While Cleverley is more likely to reserve action on Monday, both Rooney and Nani have trained for the last two days and stand a chance of first-team returns.
Ferguson also went on to reveal Anders Lindegaard will be out for four to six weeks with ankle ligament damage. It leaves the champions with something of a quandary in goal- David De Gea missed the Stoke game in midweek due to illness but he’s hardly been inspirational at the back and has been left on the bench for five of the last six matches. If De Gea is ruled out, Ben Amos is likely to continue in goal, with Ferguson admitting today that he was picked ahead of Tomasz Kuszczak on Tuesday as, with the Pole leaving in the summer, he decided to afford Amos some game time in the league.
Kenny Dalglish has confirmed Steven Gerrard will return to the Liverpool squad after being rested for the midweek win at Wolves. The midfielder has been eased back into action following groin and ankle problems but is set to feature against Spurs on Monday evening. With Luis Suarez also available after his eight-game suspension, Dalglish admitted he’s spoiled for choice right now, as the Reds look to continue their recent run of form that has knocked both Manchester clubs out of domestic cup competition.
Mohamed Diame will return for Wigan at home to Everton this weekend. The midfielder had been unavailable for the last few games due to African Cup of Nations duties but with Senegal knocked out at the group stages, he’s back for the Latics a little earlier than anticipated. Hugo Rodallega could also make a quick return, having missed the previous game due to soft tissue damage, while Franco Di Santo and Antolin Alcaraz could also be involved, after leg and groin problems respectively.
Jamie O’Hara has been included in the Wolves squad ahead of this weekend’s trip to QPR. The midfielder has failed to feature since gameweek 15 after a double hernia operation, but turned out for the reserves in midweek and is ready to step straight back into first-team action.
Steve Sidwell is set to be sidelined for up to six weeks. The Fulham midfielder is still suffering discomfort following his recent hernia operation and may require further surgery to alleviate the problem. Moussa Dembele returns to the squad and is likely to come back into central midfield, while both Andy Johnson and new signing Pavel Pogrebnyak are both unavailable, meaning Clint Dempsey is likely to play up front again for the trip to Man City. Reports also suggest Mark Schwarzer may be set to return for the Cottagers this weekend.
