A very busy day of team news awaits us as 16 Premier League managers face the media ahead of Saturday’s Gameweek 3 deadline.
We’ll be bringing you the latest key quotes and team news updates in the ‘live’ article below, so keep checking back for the latest updates.
For the headline updates from Thursday’s four pressers, click here.
GAMEWEEK 3: KEY INJURY UPDATES FROM FRIDAY’S PRESSERS
- Chelsea: Palmer “not available”, Lavia + Badiashile latest, Maresca on Delap/Pedro
- Arsenal: Saka “out for a few weeks”, Odegaard yet to train, Havertz surgery, Arteta on Eze
- Manchester City: Ait-Nouri available, Savinho latest
- Liverpool: No fresh concerns, Bradley + Mac Allister train
- Newcastle United: Gordon ban, Schar available, Joelinton + Tonali latest
- Tottenham Hotspur: Udogie in the squad, Bissouma still out
- Manchester United: Not much team news from Amorim
- Wolverhampton Wanderers: Strand Larsen dealing with “small injury”
- Aston Villa: Konsa returns, Kamara set to miss out
- Nottingham Forest: No injury updates from Nuno
- Everton: Mykolenko fit again, Aznou still a doubt
- Crystal Palace: Kamada comeback, Hughes could return, Richards update
- Bournemouth: Cook, Unal + Araujo out, Iraola on fitness of Christie + Kluivert
- Fulham: Good news on Wilson, everyone else fit
- West Ham United: Hammers “as we were”
- Sunderland: Ballard out for 2-3 weeks
CHELSEA
Enzo Maresca has confirmed that Cole Palmer (groin) will miss the Fulham game on Saturday. The midfielder has also been omitted from Thomas Tuchel’s England squad for the September internationals.
Elsewhere, Mykhailo Mudryk remains suspended, while Levi Colwill is out long-term with a knee injury. Benoit Badiashile and Romeo Lavia are still sidelined, too.
“Cole is out, Benoit out, Romeo is out. The rest, they are okay.
“Cole, we need to see day by day [how long he will be out]. And [Lavia and Badiashile], I don’t think they are going to be back after the international break but they are going to be more close.
“I spoke with Thomas [Tuchel] a few times but then at the end, it is Thomas’s decision [to leave Palmer out of the England squad]. So, he decided for that, but again, he’s not available tomorrow so it’s quite normal. It shows that he has some problems.” – Enzo Maresca
Nicolas Jackson, Christopher Nkunku, Ben Chilwell and Raheem Sterling remain surplus to requirements and again likely won’t feature. Nkunku, indeed, seems to be on the cusp of a move to AC Milan.
Maresca fielded both Joao Pedro and Liam Delap last weekend and was asked if he would continue to do so going forward.
“I think we have been the team with the most changes in the entire season last season. So I’m not looking just for two players to play always. I’m looking for different solutions. For sure, they can play together, but it’s the game plan that is demanding if it’s one, two or both. We’ll see.” – Enzo Maresca on his two forwards
ARSENAL
Bukayo Saka will be out for “weeks” after picking up a hamstring injury in the win over Leeds United. How many weeks is unknown, with Mikel Arteta saying “a few” and “a couple” in Friday’s presser.
“Bukayo is doing better but he will be out for a few weeks, unfortunately.
“No surgery. It is not as bad as the previous [hamstring injury]. Obviously, he’s very unfortunate to pick it up. It is on the other side.
“He felt something, so he will be out for a couple of weeks.
“I don’t know [if he will be involved after the international break]. Let’s see how he evolves in the next few days, few weeks. Repeat the scan and see where he’s at.” – Mikel Arteta on Bukayo Saka
Martin Odegaard (shoulder) could be back, and has indeed been named in the Norway squad, but Arteta did stress that the midfielder has yet to train.
“We don’t know yet. He hasn’t trained yet and if he does, it will be tomorrow. Let’s see. He is doing everything he can, and we’re doing everything that we can, to make him available but we’ll have to wait and see tomorrow.
“There is an injury there. Hopefully, if everything goes well, he can cope with it, but we don’t know yet.” – Mikel Arteta on Martin Odegaard
Kai Havertz (knee) and Gabriel Jesus (knee) remain out, with the former undergoing surgery this week.
“I think it will be [many, many] weeks but I don’t know how many months.” – Mikel Arteta on Kai Havertz
The absence of Christian Norgaard (unknown) and Ben White (unknown) from midweek training images renders them ongoing doubts – although Arsenal have been known to be a bit sneaky and selective regarding who their on-site photographer snaps.
Arteta said they remain concerns.
“That’s another two yet [who are doubts]. We don’t know yet, again tomorrow we have another day [of training], let’s see how they evolve and [if] there is a chance to get them involved in the game.” – Mikel Arteta on Ben White and Christian Norgaard
Leandro Trossard is also a doubt but, in a potentially positive sign, he has been called up by Belgium for the upcoming international fixtures.
Eberechi Eze could make his debut, then, but his new manager would not be drawn on whether he would start or not.
“We have options in [Odegaard’s] position and that’s a good thing that we have this year. Let’s see. As I said, another day and I’m not going to give you any clues, obviously!” – Mikel Arteta when asked if Eberechi Eze could deputise for Martin Odegaard
MANCHESTER CITY
Pep Guardiola says that Rayan Ait-Nouri is fit and available for this weekend’s clash with Brighton and Hove Albion.
“He’s fine, yep.
“[Will he be available?] Mm-hmm *nods*.” – Pep Guardiola on Rayan Ait-Nouri
We didn’t get an update on Josko Gvardiol, who has missed the first two games of the season with an unspecified issue.
Guardiola did however say that he hoped that Savinho (unknown injury) would be back in Gameweek 4.
“Yeah, hope so. Hope so, yeah.” – Pep Guardiola on whether Savinho will be back after the international break
Mateo Kovacic (Achilles) remains out.
LIVERPOOL
Jeremie Frimpong (hamstring) is still out but Arne Slot reported no fresh injury concerns ahead of Sunday’s huge game against Arsenal.
The Reds could have Alexis Mac Allister back, after the midfielder missed Monday night’s 3-2 win at Newcastle United with an unspecified issue.
Conor Bradley, who made his own comeback from injury as a substitute in that game, has also trained this week.
“No, I don’t think [there are any fresh concerns].
“I think the positive is that Conor Bradley only had one or two training sessions before the Newcastle game; he has trained this week, the whole week – [well] not the whole week as there are still two days to go.
“Mac Allister has also started training again, so I don’t think we had any injuries coming out of that game [at Newcastle], no.” – Arne Slot
Slot also confirmed Virgil van Dijk is fit after being on the receiving end of the tackle that resulted in Anthony Gordon’s red card.
The Liverpool boss was asked about Monday’s match-winner, 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha, and his role this season.
“Left-winger, that’s the role I see for him! Or is that not what you mean?!
“Now there is room for him and he can show his qualities. As things stand now, there’s still room for him to show that in the upcoming game as well because we haven’t made any signings, so I think he will be on the bench again and has a fair chance of coming in if it’s needed in the game.” – Arne Slot on Rio Ngumoha’s role this season
NEWCASTLE UNITED
The Magpies will be without Anthony Gordon, who begins a three-match ban following his dismissal for serious foul play in Gameweek 2.
But it’s relatively good news on the three injuries that Newcastle picked up on Monday.
Despite fears that he would be out with a concussion, Fabian Schar is actually available to play this weekend.
“Fabian is available. We followed Premier League protocols regarding concussions with the doctor. He should be fit and fine to play.” – Eddie Howe
Sandro Tonali (shoulder) could even be involved at Elland Road.
And while Joelinton (thigh) will miss the trip to Leeds United, he’s seemingly avoided serious injury.
“Relatively good news on both players. I think when they left the pitch [on Monday], we feared they may be out long-term because it didn’t look good for either.
“Joelinton’s scan was relatively good. He will miss this weekend but there’s a chance he could be available the other side of the international break.
“Similar with Sandro, I think his injury isn’t serious; he is battling to try and be fit for tomorrow. Whether he makes it or not, I’m not sure.
“If he can deal with his pain, he could play, but he’s still sore and the movement in his arm is reduced currently – or it was yesterday. So, we’ll see how he is today. He’s saying he wants to give it every chance to play but we need him 100% fit if he does.” – Eddie Howe
Eddie Howe confirmed that incoming striker Nick Woltemade will not be signed in time to feature.
With Gordon out and Alexander Isak still AWOL, Howe was asked if Will Osula could lead the line.
“Yeah, possibly. I think he’s certainly one of the options we’re we’re looking at. I thought he did really well when he came on. He took his goal superbly. He gave us renewed energy in a moment when the players were feeling the effects of playing without the extra man. I think he’s improved a lot from this time last year when we first signed him. He’s gained experience and certainly, the knowledge of how we play and what we ask our centre-forwards to do isn’t easy. It’s not an easy position to play but he’s gaining in confidence, I think, and that goal will do him the world of good.
“I think our job is to try and find a way to make the team function well. I think that’s the most important thing whenever you’re picking a team. It’s not necessarily about one player in one position. It’s about the team still being able to deliver a strong performance. And I think if you look at the two games, albeit without a experienced Premier League striker, the team function has been really, really strong and that’s enabled us to be more than competitive in the games.” – Eddie Howe on whether Will Osula will start
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
Destiny Udogie (knee) is back in the Spurs squad and “could feature” this weekend.
“Yes, he could feature, he’s in the squad and that’s very positive for us.” – Thomas Frank on Destiny Udogie
Yves Bissouma remains out, however, along with Radu Dragusin (knee), James Maddison (knee) and Dejan Kulusevski (knee).
“He’s out for the next game. I don’t have a specific timeline for him, but I don’t think it will be that long.” – Thomas Frank on Yves Bissouma
MANCHESTER UNITED
Ruben Amorim’s pre-match press conference was predictably short on team news, as it was dominated by talk of the midweek humiliation at Grimsby Town.
Even the post-presser chat with MUTV failed to elicit much:
“Really well. I had some choices to make [for the weekend’s side]. It was hard. I tried to choose the best starting XI, knowing that, sometimes, it’s not the starting XI that is going to finish or close the game, so everyone is really important.” – Ruben Amorim to MUTV, when asked how the squad was looking.
Lisandro Martinez (knee) and Noussair Mazraoui (unknown) are the only two absentees that we know of at present but Mazraoui is making good progress in his recovery.
WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS
Jorgen Strand Larsen remains a Wolves player after a failed bid for Newcastle United this week – but Vitor Pereira said this afternoon that the striker is dealing with a “small injury problem” at present.
This comes a week after Pereira said Strand Larsen was bothered by an Achilles issue, although he featured as a substitute in midweek and scored twice.
Pereria hopes the Norwegian can face Everton.
“He is dealing with small injury problems. I hope we can play tomorrow with him because this is a small, small, small problem but in the end of the day, he is our player, an important player for us and everything that we cannot control is out of our control.” – Vitor Pereira on Jorgen Strand Larsen
Pereira said that there was no other team news, failing to mention Ki-Jana Hoever (knee), who came off early last weekend and then didn’t feature in the EFL Cup in midweek.
The Express and Star say he merely has a knock.
ASTON VILLA
Ezri Konsa is back after serving a one-match ban in the defeat to Brentford.
The Villans look set to be without Boubacar Kamara, however, with reports suggesting he’ll be out for 2-3 weeks after picking up a hamstring injury last weekend.
Ross Barkley and Andres Garcia haven’t been seen since mid-July with unknown issues.
Unai Emery wasn’t much help on the team news front.
“We will see tomorrow, I don’t want to anticipate. We have some players injured but I will want to train tomorrow and how we can use the players in the squad for Sunday. Until tomorrow, the last training session, I don’t want to say anything.” – Unai Emery on the latest team news
NOTTINGHAM FOREST
Much like Ruben Amorim’s presser above, Nuno Espirito Santo’s media gathering was short on team news.
Predictably, the questions surrounded the Forest manager’s strained relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis.
The Tricky Trees have one injury we’re aware of: Nicolas Dominguez will be out until the autumn after undergoing knee surgery over the summer.
EVERTON
David Moyes is hoping that Vitalii Mykolenko will be able to start for Everton this weekend.
The left-back made his comeback from injury in the Carabao Cup victory over Mansfield Town in midweek, lasting almost the full game.
“I hope so. It was good to have him back because we’ve been short in recent weeks, so getting him back is really important for us.” – David Moyes on whether Vitalii Mykolenko will be able to start this weekend
Jarrad Branthwaite (hamstring) and Nathan Patterson (hernia) remain out, however, while it sounds like the Toffees are still being careful with Adam Aznou (ankle).
“Adam has still got a little bit of a problem with his ankle. He’s back doing some training but we just need to monitor him and see where he is.” – David Moyes on Adam Aznou
Away from injury news, there was tactical talk from Moyes about player versatility – with Iliman Ndiaye one of the names mentioned.
“It wasn’t by design that we had to play [some players in unnatural positions]; injuries caused us [to do] different things. Ili is different. Ili can play on the right or the left, it doesn’t really matter to Ili. So, we’re quite comfortable with that.” – David Moyes
CRYSTAL PALACE
Oliver Glasner is confident that the Palace players who featured against Fredrikstad on Thursday night will be ready to go again against Aston Villa.
Daichi Kamada (knee) returned to fitness for that UEFA Conference League clash.
Will Hughes, who sat out the trip to Norway with an unspecified issue, might also now return – but there remains some doubt.
“We have a question mark with Will Hughes. We will see, we will have to assess in the next two days if he’s available for Villa.” – Oliver Glasner
Chris Richards reported an ankle issue but seems to have shaken it off.
“Chris [Richards’] ankle was swollen before, but looked better after – he got treatment. It looks like all the players who were available [last night] are available.” – Oliver Glasner
Odsonne Edouard (Achilles), Chadi Riad (knee), Cheick Doucoure (knee), Eddie Nketiah (hamstring) and Caleb Kporha (back) remain out.
Marc Guehi is still a Palace player – for now – and was in the Conference League squad in midweek.
Yeremy Pino has completed his signing in time to be eligible for selection for Sunday’s game.
BOURNEMOUTH
Lewis Cook (knee) is no longer suspended but he remains injured for this weekend’s clash with Tottenham Hotspur. He should be back after the September international break.
Enes Unal, meanwhile, is still recovering from a knee injury sustained in January.
Julian Araujo is the latest addition to the unavailable list: he serves a one-match ban after being sent off for two bookable offences in the midweek cup defeat to Brentford.
Asked about Ryan Christie and Justin Kluivert, who were on the bench last weekend after recovering from injury, Iraola says they need more minutes.
“I think they needed the minutes [in midweek], I think they still need more minutes. They haven’t done a proper pre-season, especially Ryan.
“Ryan’s last game he played starting, I think was probably March or even before, I don’t know. But it’s good to have him with us because he gives us quality minutes and he will improve. Every game he plays, he will be better.
“Justin has been a shorter period but it’s an important period, always, pre-season. I think he’s a player that normally doesn’t take a lot to get in form… I think he’s quite sharp naturally. I think, because he was also quite good the other day, that he’s already at a good level to help us.” – Andoni Iraola on Ryan Christie and Justin Kluivert
FULHAM
Harry Wilson has avoided serious injury despite limping off with a foot problem in midweek.
Marco Silva said on Friday that a scan has returned “nothing serious” and that Wilson could be involved against Chelsea, although a late check is needed.
Everyone else is fit.
That includes Antonee Robinson, who was back in the squad last weekend, but Silva said that the American wasn’t yet ready for 90 minutes, having sat out much of pre-season after knee surgery.
WEST HAM UNITED
Graham Potter says the team news is “pretty much” unchanged from the midweek cup defeat at Molineux.
Luis Guilherme (collarbone) and Crysencio Summerville (hamstring) remain on the injury list, while George Earthy (ankle) returned to training last week but wasn’t involved in Gameweek 2 or Tuesday’s EFL Cup loss.
“I think we’ll be pretty much as we were.” – Graham Potter on the latest injury news
SUNDERLAND
Regis Le Bris says that the Black Cats have no new injury concerns heading into the Brentford game.
That includes Niall Huggins, who came off with groin discomfort in Tuesday’s EFL Cup tie with Huddersfield Town but who has trained since.
Ahead of that fixture, Dan Ballard (groin) was ruled out for 2-3 weeks.
Aji Alese (shoulder), Luke O’Nien (shoulder), Dennis Cirkin (wrist) and Leo Hjelde (Achilles) remain absent until at least Gameweek 4.
Romaine Mundle is currently sidelined with a hamstring issue until October, too.
