Tuesday will be a big day for Gameweek 21 team news, as 14 Premier League managers face the media.
All the injury updates and key quotes from the day’s press conferences will be in this article, which will be refreshed throughout the day.
You can find the major news from Monday’s four pressers here.
As feared, Arne Slot and Mikel Arteta won’t face the media till Wednesday – ergo after the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) deadline.
TUESDAY’S KEY GAMEWEEK 21 INJURY NEWS
- Manchester City: Gvardiol out for “long time”, Dias sidelined for 4-6 weeks
- Manchester United: Bruno + Mount in line to return but with managed minutes
- Bournemouth: Kluivert undergoes knee surgery, Semenyo set for last game
- Chelsea: Sanchez + Cucurella to train, Caicedo back from a ban
- Newcastle United: Murphy likely to be available, Elanga set to miss out again
- Brighton and Hove Albion: Minteh only has a “minor chance”, Wieffer out
- Crystal Palace: Lerma + Clyne out, Richards available but won’t start
- Everton: Keane comes through comeback unscathed; no one expected back
- Aston Villa: Pau + Mings could return
- Brentford: No fresh concerns for the Bees
- Fulham: Tete, King + Muniz still out but Sessegnon returns
- Sunderland: Isidor to be assessed, no fresh concerns, Reinildo’s Mozambique eliminated
- Burnley: Hannibal + Foster could feature after AFCON eliminations, Esteve latest
- Wolverhampton Wanderers: Joao Gomes + Hwang train after weekend scares
TUESDAY’S PRESS CONFERENCE TIMES
MANCHESTER CITY
City confirmed yesterday that Josko Gvardiol had sustained a “tibial fracture to his right leg” and would undergo surgery this week.
We’ve had no official timeline on the defender but Pep Guardiola confirmed on Tuesday that he would be out for a while.
“Out for a long time.” – Pep Guardiola on Josko Gvardiol
It gets worse at the back, too, with Ruben Dias (hamstring) joining Gvardiol and John Stones (thigh) on the sidelines.
“Hamstring, 4-6 weeks.” – Pep Guardiola on Ruben Dias
“No idea.
“He’s not ready for the next games.” – Pep Guardiola on John Stones
Mateo Kovacic (ankle) and, we think, Oscar Bobb (hamstring) and Savinho (unspecified) are still unavailable, too.
Omar Marmoush and Rayan Ait-Nouri remain at the Africa Cup of Nations, meanwhile.
Nico Gonzalez is at least fit after missing out in Gameweek 20.
“He’s fine.” – Pep Guardiola on Nico Gonzalez
Away from injuries, Guardiola said he would consider “fatigue” as City prepare to host Brighton.
“It’s considering a little bit the fatigue. We are going to see the faces, tomorrow we are going to take the decision. Second day they are always tired, third day they are a little bit better. Tomorrow, we will see.” – Pep Guardiola
MANCHESTER UNITED
Interim United boss Darren Fletcher said that Bruno Fernandes (hamstring) and Mason Mount (muscle) are in contention to return on Wednesday – but did stress that minutes would be managed.
“Mason and Bruno, I think they were pushing to play against Leeds. The decision was that they weren’t quite ready. So they’ve trained, they should be back in the squad, but they’ll be on managed minutes as well, restricted minutes because obviously they’ve just returned to training.” – Darren Fletcher
Kobbie Mainoo (calf), Matthijs de Ligt (back) and Harry Maguire (hamstring) look set to miss out again, while Bryan Mbeumo, Amad Diallo and Noussair Mazraoui remain on international duty.
BOURNEMOUTH
Justin Kluivert will undergo knee surgery this week and is set for “months” out.
“He will need surgery and the time out will depend on what happens in the surgery. He will have surgery Thursday and depending what they decide to do, will be… it will be months. It can be more months or less months, depending how they approach the surgery. But yes, definitely very bad news.” – Andoni Iraola on Justin Kluivert
Facing the media, Iraola confirmed he would have Antoine Semenyo available for the Tottenham Hotspur match – but admitted that it was probably his last game.
“Antoine will play tomorrow, yes.
“There is nothing signed with Antoine Semenyo. If you asked me personally, ‘What do you think?’, with all the noise and this, I think it could be the last game. But I cannot guarantee it.
“He’s our player and I hope he continues but my understanding, because I’ve been in other markets before at this club and others, there is a chance it’s his last game, yes.” – Andoni Iraola on Antoine Semenyo
Other than Kluivert, the Cherries have no other fresh worries.
Tyler Adams (knee), Ben Gannon-Doak (hamstring), Ryan Christie (knee) and Will Dennis (ankle) remain out but Veljko Milosavljevic (knee) has returned to training.
CHELSEA
Liam Rosenior is officially the new Chelsea head coach but he won’t be in charge for the clash with Fulham.
Interim boss Calum McFarlane will instead be in the hotseat at Craven Cottage, and it was the academy coach who was on press conference duties on Tuesday.
McFarlane confirmed that Marc Cucurella (hamstring) and Robert Sanchez (muscle) will train today, with Wesley Fofana (illness) also facing assessment.
Moises Caicedo returns from a one-match ban for yellow card accumulation, too.
“They’re all training today. We’ve got training in a few hours, so they’ll be taking part in the session today. We’ll have a lot better idea after the session. So, we’re hopeful.
“No [no one is ruled out], not at this point, So we’ll look at training, see how they look, and make a call after that.” – Calum McFarlane on Marc Cucurella, Robert Sanchez and Moises Caicedo
“He’s going to be checked when he comes in, they’re reporting shortly so he’ll be checked when he comes in.” – Calum McFarlane on Wesley Fofana
Dario Essugo (thigh), Romeo Lavia (quad), Levi Colwill (knee) and Mykhailo Mudryk (suspended) remain out.
NEWCASTLE UNITED
A scan has come back clear on Jacob Murphy‘s hamstring, so the winger will hopefully be involved against Leeds United on Wednesday.
“He’s had a scan. There’s good news on the scan: no major injury there. So, I think it was probably fatigue. His physical numbers in the game were outstanding. I think he will be available at the moment. I think it will be a late decision for us, but fingers crossed.” – Eddie Howe on Jacob Murphy
Anthony Elanga (knock) looks set to remain out, however, along with Dan Burn (rib), Emil Krafth (knee) and Will Osula (ankle) remain out.
“I don’t think he’s quite there yet. We keep thinking maybe the next game but it’s just taking a little bit longer in the final stages than we’d hoped. He won’t be long but maybe not for this one.” – Eddie Howe on Anthony Elanga
Sven Botman, Kieran Trippier and Tino Livramento all returned to the squad as substitutes in Gameweek 20.
The latter two will now put pressure on budget FPL midfielder Lewis Miley, who has excelled in a right-back role in recent weeks.
“We’ll take it on a game-by-game basis. I think Lewis has done really well. I think on the ball, especially the other day, in some really tight areas, he got out of some really difficult spots with his range and his really good touch. Defensively, again, I thought he was outstanding. Let’s see what we do for this game.” – Eddie Howe on Lewis Miley
Howe was also asked about whether Yoane Wissa could manage three successive starts after his recent lay-off.
“With Yoane, we’ll make an individual decision on him. We’ll look at a lot of the data that we have. I’ll be in discussions with the sports science team and medical team to make the right call.
“Nick [Woltemade] has been fine, Nick’s been really good. I think he appreciates that he’s had a lot of games. This is a chance for him to just draw breath, reflect, and then go again.
“I’m really happy with both players.” – Eddie Howe
BRIGHTON AND HOVE ALBION
Fabian Hurzeler said that Yankuba Minteh (dead leg) only has a “minor chance” of recovering for the trip to Manchester City.
“Regards Minteh, we need to have a look. It’s still not perfect but there’s a minor chance that he will be available tomorrow.” – Fabian Hurzeler
Mats Wieffer remains out with a toe injury, too, along with Solly March (knee), Adam Webster (knee) and Stefanos Tzimas (knee).
“Mats Wieffer won’t be available, he still has an issue with his toe.” – Fabian Hurzeler
Carlos Baleba remains on international duty with Cameroon.
Hurzeler at least confirmed that Kaoru Mitoma is an option to start again, after the winger returned to the side on Saturday.
“I think we managed him well, also in the game against Burnley. Of course, it was his first start after a long time, but he collected some game minutes before. So, we are quite confident that he will be able to start the game.” – Fabian Hurzeler on Kaoru Mitoma
And Albion also have no fresh concerns from the weekend.
“No, at the moment, everyone seems to be fine. Of course, we still have a training session later but overall it looks quite okay.” – Fabian Hurzeler on whether Brighton have any new concerns
Having appeared as a substitute in Gameweek 20, the returning Pascal Gross enters into his manager’s thoughts.
“I said from the beginning, we brought Pascal to play, and therefore he will be definitely an option. He plays a big part in our thoughts for the second part of the season.
“For me, he’s a center mid. I think that’s his best position. For me, he can, like I just said, define the rhythm of the game.” – Fabian Hurzeler on Pascal Gross
CRYSTAL PALACE
Jefferson Lerma (concussion) and Nathaniel Clyne (knock) will both miss the visit of Aston Villa.
Daniel Munoz (knee), Rio Cardines (groin), Daichi Kamada (hamstring), Cheick Doucoure (knee), Caleb Kporha (back), Chadi Riad (knee) and Eddie Nketiah (hamstring) remain out, too, while Ismaila Sarr is still on international duty.
And while Chris Richards (foot) returns to the squad, Oliver Glasner confirmed that the centre-half is not ready to start.
EVERTON
Having sat out Gameweek 19, Michael Keane came through his comeback unscathed at the weekend.
“He did, yeah. He came through fine. Obviously, we’ve got to be careful with three games in six days but he came through fine. I was really pleased because I was worried that he wouldn’t.” – David Moyes on Michael Keane
David Moyes isn’t expecting to have anyone else back on Wednesday, however.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (hamstring), Carlos Alcaraz (unspecified), Seamus Coleman (hamstring) and Jarrad Branthwaite (hamstring) remain on the sidelines, while Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gana Gueye are still at the Africa Cup of Nations.
“No, we’re not getting anybody back this week.
“I don’t know yet [if anyone will be back for the FA Cup].” – David Moyes
The old-school Moyes (mostly) gave short shrift to a question about managing minutes in this busy schedule.
“You talk a lot about the minutes but we don’t have European football. So we’re not as bad as several clubs.
“So yeah, we’re in the schedule… but I think it’s part of the job. You’re saying manage the minutes, we’re having to pick players we think are right and put them out. At the back of our minds, yes, we are conscious we are quite light in the squad and we’ll need to be careful, and we’re not overdoing the training at the moment.” – David Moyes
ASTON VILLA
Pau Torres (calf) and Tyrone Mings (hamstring) will be assessed ahead of the trip to Crystal Palace.
Ross Barkley (knee) and Amadou Onana (muscle) remain sidelined, while Evann Guessand is still away at the Africa Cup of Nations.
“We’re training now, after the press conference. We’ll see how they are doing, the players, after the match we played on Saturday.
“Tyrone and Pau are close but we are going to train now, I don’t know if for tomorrow they’ll be available or not. And other players – no Barkley, no Guessand, no Amadou.
“But we have enough players; after training we’re going to decide if someone is close, like Pau and Tyrone Mings.” – Unai Emery
BRENTFORD
The Bees are in a similar boat compared to Gameweek 20 when it comes to team news.
“We’re probably as we were, really. Over the last week or two, we’re pretty similar in terms of bodies and people available. Nothing really new to report, I don’t think.” – Keith Andrews
Long-term absentees Josh Dasilva, Fábio Carvalho and Antoni Milambo are all still sidelined due to knee injuries.
Frank Onyeka and Dango Ouattara are also unavailable due to their ongoing involvement in the Africa Cup of Nations.
There was nothing from Andrews on Igor Thiago‘s ability to start four matches in 12 days – just plenty of praise for the Brazilian striker on not just Sunday’s hat-trick but also his all-round contribution to the Bees.
FULHAM
Kenny Tete (hamstring), Josh King (knee) and Rodrigo Muniz (hamstring) remain out, while Calvin Bassey, Alex Iwobi and Samuel Chukwueze are still on international duty.
Ryan Sessegnon (hamstring) is back in the squad, however, after a return to training.
SUNDERLAND
Having missed out in Gameweek 20 with a minor issue, Wilson Isidor will be assessed in training today.
“We’ll see this morning, he’ll have a test on the pitch. We’ll see if he’s available or not.” – Regis Le Bris on Wilson Isidor
Dan Ballard came through his comeback game unscathed, while Sunderland suffered no new injuries in the draw with Tottenham Hotspur.
“Yeah, [Ballard] was fine.
“At the minute, yes, [everyone else is okay].” – Regis Le Bris
Arthur Masuaku, Noah Sadiki, Bertrand Traore, Habib Diarra and Chemsdine Talbi are all still at the Africa Cup of Nations, although Reinildo Mandava‘s Mozambique were eliminated on Monday night.
“Probably, until Everton [in the FA Cup on Saturday], it will be tough to have the players from AFCON. Maybe Rei, because Mozambique lost yesterday evening, but we don’t know for the others.” – Regis Le Bris
Regis Le Bris mentioned in the aftermath of Gameweek 20 that energy levels were dipping amid the fixture pile-up but sang a slightly different tune on Tuesday.
“It’s difficult for us but it’s difficult for our opponent, as well. It’s an interesting period. They showed great consistency even across this long spell, because it’s really hard, but I think players, even if they are tired, they like playing football.” – Regis Le Bris on fatigue
BURNLEY
Two of Burnley’s three Africa Cup of Nations representatives have been eliminated, so Axel Tuanzebe is the only one still in Morocco with his country.
Hannibal Mejbri is back with the Clarets and trained this morning, while Lyle Foster returns to the UK today and will be assessed.
“Hannibal came back in and trained with us this morning. Hopefully, we will have him available. Lyle will fly in tonight, so we will see how gets in – obviously a long travel for Lyle – and whether he will be involved tomorrow.” – Scott Parker
Injury-wise, Parker had only the following to say in the broadcast section.
“Everyone else is where we currently are, really.” – Scott Parker on injuries
Later, in quotes reported by local media, he ruled out Mike Tresor, Zian Flemming and Joe Worrall are again going to miss out with unspecified issues.
Josh Cullen (knee), Jordan Beyer (hamstring), Connor Roberts (Achilles) and Zeki Amdouni (knee) are on the longer-term unavailable list.
Maxime Esteve has trained, however, and could return.
“He’s trained today. Again, it’s probably similar to where we were, so we’ll make a call on that tomorrow to see exactly where he is.
“He’s gone through more of an extensive phase now and we’ll see how he comes out of today’s session, which was just obviously completed, to make a call on Maxi for tomorrow.” – Scott Parker on Maxime Esteve, via the Burnley Express
WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS
Joao Gomes (groin) and Hwang Hee-chan (calf) have both trained today, despite coming off with injuries on Saturday.
Rob Edwards is hopeful of having the pair available.
Other than that, the Wolves boss is not expecting anyone back.
Marshall Munetsi (calf), Dan Bentley (ankle), Rodrigo Gomes (groin), Jean-Ricner Bellegarde (hamstring) and Toti Gomes (hamstring) remain out, while Emmanuel Agbadou is still at the Africa Cup of Nations.
