We’ve got injury updates from seven Premier League managers who held pre-match press conferences on Thursday.
The head coaches of Brighton and Hove Albion, Leeds United, Newcastle United, Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, Watford and Wolverhampton Wanderers all faced the media today, and we’ll be summarising the key information on this page.
A total of 13 more top-flight bosses will take questions from reporters on Friday, when we’ll bring you our second team news round-up of the week.
In the meantime, check out our ‘early team news’ round-up here for the clubs not listed below.
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
Japhet Tanganga (knee) will be out until the end of the season and Oliver Skipp (groin) has had a setback in his recovery but Ryan Sessegnon (hamstring) and Sergio Reguilon (knee) could return at Villa Park, having rejoined training this week.
Antonio Conte reported no fresh fitness concerns, meanwhile.
“No new injuries. Good news because Ryan Sessegnon and Sergio Reguilon had a training session today with us. About Olly Skipp, we have to wait. He’s still not ready and we need to have patience with him to try to solve his problem.
“It was the first time for Ryan Sessegnon for a long time and for sure, with him we have to pay more attention than Sergio, but at the same time it was good to have him with us in the training session.” – Antonio Conte
Conte had plenty to say about the in-form Harry Kane and Matt Doherty, too, in his dealings with the press.
“Matthew is the typical player that is showing big improvement. If you remember very well, at the start he didn’t play a lot with me because at that moment I think he didn’t deserve to play. But then he worked really hard. He’s a really good guy. In every training session, you see the desire, the will to improve himself, the tactical and technical aspect. He’s got a great mentality because he’s strong.
“Many times when players don’t play a lot, they go down mentally. Instead he’s shown me to be strong, to stay there. He showed me, ‘I’ll do what you want, I am going to improve and when I am ready, I want to play’. He showed me not with talking but with his attitude and his behaviour and for this reason now he is playing, he is deserving to play and he is playing very well. He has great confidence and I am very happy for him, because this is a big example for the other players. I want to win and I don’t care if I play one player or another player, I decide the player when I see that this player gives me great attitude.” – Antonio Conte on Matt Doherty
“He has the right age to consolidate and be one of the best in the world. His role, he’s a number nine but at the same time, he can become a number 10 because of his quality.
“He’s very good to make assists and to put the ball where he wants. We try also to exploit this aspect and give the ball to him. About our team, I’m trying to improve not his quality but to be more effective, to be in the box and a striker.
“I repeat we’re talking about a fantastic player, so it’s very difficult to improve him but we’re trying to work, to push him to have the top ambition to become the best striker.” – Antonio Conte on Harry Kane
LEEDS UNITED
Patrick Bamford (foot), Jamie Shackleton (calf), Junior Firpo (knee) and Tyler Roberts (hamstring) remain on the sidelines for the trip to Watford but Jesse Marsch otherwise had positive news to report.
Marsch’s assertion that the rest of his squad were pretty much fully fit suggests that Leo Hjelde (knee) is fine, after the young defender only just missed out on the draw with Southampton.
Joe Gelhardt is also expected to feature despite picking up a knock in an under-23s match on Monday but bench duty perhaps beckons once again based on his manager’s words.
“Tyler [Roberts], Junior [Firpo] and Patrick [Bamford] are all making good progress. Jamie Shackleton is almost ready to train but not quite. Most of the other players are available and ready to go, I think all of them.
“[Gelhardt] hasn’t trained every day this week but we think he will train tomorrow and we think he will be available for the match on the weekend. How we use him… we’ll evaluate that as we go. While I’ve been here, it’s been so unfortunate because there was a back problem and a false Covid, then this injury. It’s a knock that led to a contusion and swelling. Every day it has got better.” – Jesse Marsch
NEWCASTLE UNITED
Kieran Trippier (foot) and Callum Wilson (calf) remain on the injury list, with Eddie Howe confirming after the loss at Spurs that Trippier’s foot hasn’t healed as well as the Magpies would have liked and that he will remain sidelined until the tail-end of the campaign.
Joe Willock is also a doubt with a “slight” knee problem that he has played through for weeks, and while Miguel Almiron returns from an ailment, Howe said on Thursday that illness had been affecting other players at the club.
“Joe Willock’s got a slight knee problem that’s been there for a couple of weeks so we’re going to make a late call on him. We don’t think it’s anything serious but certainly he’s become a little bit more aware of it in training and I think it’s something we just need to stay on top of.Â
“There’s been a bit of illness in the camp for a while, I’d say for three or four weeks. When these things go through your squad, you’re always picking up the effects of it. We’ve still had some illness this week and players struggling to get rid of things they’ve been carrying for a while.” – Eddie Howe
WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS
There are few players still in the physio room at Wolves, with Nelson Semedo and Pedro Neto making the bench last weekend after their respective recoveries. Semedo, Bruno Lage said on Thursday, has had another full week of training under his belt ahead of the trip to Newcastle.
Lage also told reporters that Ki-Jana Hoever (hamstring) will likely be ready to feature after Gameweek 32, following a partial return to training this week.
Ruben Neves (knee) and Raul Jimenez (suspended) are the only other players out but Neves isn’t as seriously injured as first feared.
BRIGHTON AND HOVE ALBION
The only two players on the sidelines for the visit of Norwich City, Adam Webster (groin) and Moises Caicedo (illness), could return this weekend.
Adam Lallana (hamstring), who made the bench against the Canaries, has also been building up his match-readiness ahead of the trip to Arsenal but Jakub Moder (knee) is set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after injuring himself in Gameweek 31.
“Adam Webster has made some more progress, has been training a little bit with the group. He may be involved at the weekend, we’ll see – not starting, anyway, but he might be involved the squad.
“Adam Lallana has taken another step forward as well, so is closer to being involved. We will make a decision probably tomorrow but more likely to be in the squad I would say now.
“Apart from that, we’re pretty much as we were.” – Graham Potter
SOUTHAMPTON
Lyanco (thigh) has made a swifter-than-expected return to training ahead of the visit of Chelsea, a match that loanee Armando Broja will miss as he is ineligible to face his parent club.
Alex McCarthy (hamstring) has also been back on the grass over the last week after an absence of almost four months, with Ralph Hasenhuttl’s words suggesting he is still in the process of building up match fitness.
Shane Long (ankle) hopes to shake off an ankle injury to feature, meanwhile.
“From the training ground this week, Lyanco is back in training with the team. [He’s completed the] first two sessions and today he made a rest, but it’s good to have him back on the pitch.
“Longy was not involved in the sessions so far this week. Today he was light training outside with his ankle injury he had in the Leeds game. It’s not that serious. It was good we had a scan immediately and he rested for two days and we’ll see how his ankle reacts to the session today and let’s have a look if he’s available for the weekend.
“[Alex McCarthy] is back in training, training with the goalkeeper team and is on the way back building up his qualities.” – Ralph Hasenhuttl
WATFORD
It’s all quiet on the fitness front at Watford, with Roy Hodgson having a full squad at his disposal.
Kwadwo Baah (ankle), the only player who was declared unavailable for the hard-fought loss at Anfield, has rejoined training this week.
“Basically, we have a fully fit squad. It’s quite incredible the work the doctors and the physios have done here this late in the season to present each day a list of players all of them ready and able to train. So I congratulate them and it does mean that we don’t have anything to think about in that respect.” – Roy Hodgson
