Steven Gerrard is back for Liverpool this weekend. Charlie Adam is out for the season, though, as are Seb Larsson and Kieran Richardson for Sunderland. Younes Kaboul and Emmanuel Adebayor may be back this weekend for Spurs, while Owen Coyle has plenty of injury worries ahead of Bolton’s second double Gameweek in a row:
Liverpool have revealed that Steven Gerrard is set for a return to action ahead of their double Gameweek. The Reds skipper missed out in last weekend’s home loss to West Brom as a precautionary measure, with Kenny Dalglish confirming today the midfielder has trained all week and is “fine”. With a trip to Norwich and a home clash against Fulham up next, Gerrard has the potential to produce despite his side’s poor form – his previous double Gameweek 28 returned 22 points. Given that the FA Cup Final against Chelsea is four days after the Cottagers’ game, he should be afforded enough time to recuperate if he plays both league matches, though his chances much depend on Dalglish’s rotation thoughts, as the Merseyside club look to pick up their second piece of silverware this season.
Charlie Adam won’t be taking part, though. Liverpool confirmed earlier this morning that the former Blackpool man is out for the season with a knee problem. Adam picked up the injury in the Gameweek 29 loss at QPR and was subbed off at half-time; although he won’t require an operation, the Scot will take no further part in his side’s campaign.
Reports suggest Younes Kaboul could be in line for a shock return to the Spurs team as early as this Sunday. Although Harry Redknapp all but ruled the centre-half out for the season only yesterday, Kaboul is winning his battle to overcome a knee problem ahead of the double Gameweek matches against Blackburn and Bolton. Despite earlier reports of a fall-out with Redknapp, Emmanuel Adebayor is expected to return after missing out with a hamstring problem at QPR last week, though Benoit Assou-Ekotto remains a significant doubt after sustaining a shoulder injury – Danny Rose is expected to step up in his absence.
Seb Larsson and Kieran Richardson have both been ruled out for the season by Sunderland. Larsson has undergone minor surgery to alleviate a hernia problem and, with the Black Cats’ top-flight safety assured, Martin O’Neill has granted the midfielder leave in order to afford him enough recovery time to play for Sweden in this season’s Euro 2012. Larsson has missed just three games all season but revealed he’s been struggling with a groin problem in recent weeks, while Richardson has also went under the knife due to a groin injury – he missed last weekend’s trip to Villa due to the problem. With three games left of the campaign, Larsson’s absence is likely to offer Ahmed Elmohamady a chance on the right flank, while Phil Bardsley could continue at left-back – John O’Shea was handed the right-back role upon his return from injury at Villa last time out.
Owen Coyle has plenty of injury worries to contend with ahead of Bolton’s pair of upcoming fixtures. The Trotters’ second double Gameweek in a row sees them take on Sunderland and Tottenham but, as the manager admitted earlier today, he is sweating over the availability of a number of players after Tuesday night’s win at Villa, with his midfield, in particular, hit hard:
I don’t think it is rocket science to understand that Chris Eagles came off injured and he is one of those, while Mark Davies was touch-and-go before the game but managed to play through it. Ryo Miyaichi had a bad shoulder and got another bang on it when he was upended on the touchline at Villa Park. Darren Pratley is still shrugging off the virus he had. He hasn’t trained today but we will look at that tomorrow (Friday). There are one or two others who have taken knocks but hopefully we can get them patched up and available to go and try to win some important points at Sunderland.
Roberto Martinez revealed earlier he will give both Franco Di Santo and Hugo Rodallega “until the very last minute” to shake off injuries ahead of this weekend. The pair are struggling to overcome calf and knee problem respectively ahead of this weekend’s home game against Newcastle, leaving Wigan facing a striker shortage – Connor Sammon is likely to step in against the Magpies if both forwards miss out.
