Aaron Ramsey and Mesut Ozil are both expected to be available for Arsenal’s double-header with leaders Man City. Swansea City’s Alfie Mawson is available for their crucial clash at Brighton. Leighton Baines has a chance of returning for Everton’s trip to Watford, while Jermain Defoe may also be back in contention as Bournemouth welcome Newcastle to the Vitality Stadium.
Here’s our summary of the team news so far, with a host of press conferences still to come later today.
Earlier this morning, Arsene Wenger delivered a positive injury update ahead of Arsenal’s pair of upcoming matches against Man City. Aaron Ramsey and Mesut Ozil are both likely to be in contention for Sunday’s Carabao Cup final, with the two sides also squaring up at the Emirates on Thursday night in the final match of Gameweek 28. Alexandre Lacazette remains sidelined with a knee complaint, however, with Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang set to lead the attack in both matches in his absence.
City will, of course, be without the suspended Fabian Delph, while Gabriel Jesus continues to edge towards a first-team return that would impact on Sergio Aguero’s pitch-time. Pep Guardiola is expected to give an update on the Brazilian’s fitness in his early-afternoon press conference later today.
Alfie Mawson has given Swansea a major lift ahead of their trip to rivals Brighton. Passed fit for the Amex Stadium encounter, the centre-half has recovered after his knee locked during the warm-up before last weekend’s FA Cup tie against Sheffield Wednesday.
After scoring on his Brighton & Hove Albion debut in the FA Cup victory over Coventry City, Chris Hughton must decide whether to hand Jurgen Locadia a first Premier League start against the Swans, with Glenn Murray perhaps the man to miss out.
Burnley manager Sean Dyche has conceded that Tom Heaton is some way off a first-team return, despite playing 90 minutes for the reserves earlier this week. Chris Wood may return for the home encounter against Southampton, while the fit-again Stephen Ward is expected to push for a starting spot. James Tarkowski is rated as “touch and go,” while Scott Arfield is a doubt.
Sofiane Boufal could be available to return for Saints, but Maya Yoshida has been ruled out for at least four to five weeks, while Steven Davis and Shane Long are unlikely to feature at Turf Moor.
Shinji Okazaki remains sidelined for Leicester City’s home meeting with Stoke City, but Wes Morgan is available again and could replace Aleksandar Dragovic in central defence.
The Potters will again be without Peter Crouch, with Mame Biram Diouf favourite to lead the line. Stephen Ireland is also unavailable but Bruno Martins Indi is back in the squad following a leg injury. Paul Lambert revealed that one or two players are carrying knocks but refused to name those set to asssessed.
Jermain Defoe could be set to challenge Callum Wilson’s minutes after returning to training for Bournemouth. Earlier this morning, manager Eddie Howe revealed that the veteran has a chance of making the squad for tomorrow’s match with Newcastle.
As for the Magpies, they may have Islam Slimani available to make his debut after the forward returned to first-team training. Ciaran Clark (knee) remains doubtful.
With a near fully-fit squad to choose from, Jurgen Klopp has plenty of options available to him for the visit of West Ham United to Anfield. The likes of Joe Gomez, Dejan Lovren, Jordan Henderson and James Milner may push for recalls.
Manuel Lanzini is back in training following a hamstring injury ahead of the trip to Liverpool and could be available to return for the Hammers. Winston Reid may also come back into contention following illness, but Arthur Masuaku remains suspended.
West Bromwich Albion head coach Alan Pardew will be able to call upon both Kieran Gibbs and Jake Livermore for the home clash against Huddersfield Town, but Daniel Sturridge is ruled out with a hamstring injury.
The Terriers will be without the injured Aaron Mooy for the trip to The Hawthorns, but Laurent Depoitre and Chris Lowe have both returned to training and could feature.
Heurelho Gomes, Miguel Britos, Will Hughes and Kiko Femenia have all returned to full training ahead of Watford’s home meeting with Everton, and may be available to return.
Toffees defender Eliaquim Mangala will miss the trip to Vicarage Road, while Sam Allardyce has also admitted that Seamus Coleman is a major doubt. That will likely mean another start for Jonjoe Kenny, while left-back Leighton Baines could be back in contention after stepping up his recovery over the recent break.
Crystal Palace’s Mamadou Sakho has returned to training following a calf injury and may be fit to face Tottenham Hotspur at Selhurst Park.
Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino looks to have a clean bill of health for the London derby, with the likes of Serge Aurier, Toby Alderweireld and Erik Lamela all pushing for starts.
Jose Mourinho looks set to be without Ander Herrera for the home encounter with Chelsea after the midfielder picked up a muscle injury against Sevilla. Paul Pogba is poised to be handed a recall, while if Phil Jones remains out, either Victor Lindelof or Eric Bailly should start in central defence.
Tiemoue Bakayoko, David Luiz and Ross Barkley all missed Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with Barcelona on Tuesday night, and remain doubts for the trip to Old Trafford. But Marcos Alonso did return from injury in midweek and should start. Blues boss Antonio Conte faces a tough decision in attack. He opted for Eden Hazard as a “false 9” against the Spanish side but could hand either Olivier Giroud or Alvaro Morata a starting role should he revert back to a 3-4-2-1 set-up.
All this and more has now been updated in the Team News section ahead of tomorrow’s deadline. Keep an eye on our official Twitter account for breaking news – as the day unfolds, we will issue updates from Friday’s press conferences and refresh our Team News tab accordingly to keep you informed.
