Barclays Premier League
Saturday, September 28th
Aston Villa (13) v Man City (3)
Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert is hopeful a number of his key players will return. Gabriel Agbonlahor, Fabian Delph, Andreas Weimann, Ciaran Clark and Antonio Luna should all be available again after recent knocks and niggles. Lambert remains without Christian Benteke (hip) and Ashley Westwood (thigh), whilst Jores Okore (knee), Charles N'Zogbia (Achilles) and Gary Gardner (back) are long-term casualties.
Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero is to miss the game as the Argentina forward suffered a knock in the latter stages of the Manchester derby and will not be risked ahead of Wednesday's Champions League clash with Bayern Munich. Playmaker David Silva (thigh) is still out but could return against Bayern, while defender Martin Demichelis (knee) remains on the sidelines.
Last season: Aston Villa 0 Man City 1, Man City 5 Aston Villa 0
Last five league matches: Aston Villa W L L L W; Man City W L W D W
Top scorers: Christian Benteke (Aston Villa) 5; Yaya Toure (Man City) 5
Match Odds: H 5-1 A 8-15 D 16-5
Referee: Mike Jones (Cheshire).
Fulham (18) v Cardiff (16)
Fulham defender Aaron Hughes and midfielder Bryan Ruiz face fitness tests as they have been absent with respective thigh and ankle injuries. Ashkan Dejagah (calf), Matthew Briggs (hernia) and first-choice goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg (shoulder) are still out.
Cardiff boss Malky Mackay could choose to hand Peter Odemwingie a first Premier League start for his new club. Odemwingie scored in the midweek Capital One Cup defeat at West Ham and could replace Fraizer Campbell. Mackay is otherwise expected to stick with the side that suffered a last-gasp defeat to Tottenham last weekend. Andrew Taylor will make his 100th appearance for the club, while Kevin McNaughton has joined Bolton on a month-long emergency loan.
Last season: No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches: Fulham W L L D L; Cardiff L W D D L
Top scorers: Darren Bent (Fulham) 2; Fraizer Campbell (Cardiff) 2
Match Odds: H 21-20 A 13-5 D 12-5
Referee: Craig Pawson (South Yorkshire).
Hull (11) v West Ham (15)
Hull welcome back Maynor Figueroa as the Honduran left-back missed the 3-2 win over Newcastle due to personal reasons. Robert Koren (broken foot) and James Chester (hamstring) are long-term absentees and Paul McShane is only fit for the bench, meaning Steve Bruce must choose between Alex Bruce and Abdoulaye Faye at centre-back.
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce will welcome winger Stewart Downing back into his squad. The summer signing from Liverpool has been missing with a leg injury. Joe Cole (hamstring) joins Andy Carroll (heel) on the sidelines whilst defender George McCartney will not feature despite making his long-awaited comeback from a knee injury in Tuesday's win over Cardiff.
Last season: No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches: Hull L W L D W; West Ham W D L D L
Top scorers: Robbie Brady (Hull) 3; Ravel Morrison (West Ham) 3
Match Odds: H 7-5 A 7-4 D 11-5
Referee: Kevin Friend (Leicestershire).
Man Utd (8) v West Brom (14)
Manchester United manager David Moyes expects to have Robin van Persie and Tom Cleverley available. Van Persie has missed the last two games with a groin injury, while Cleverley was ruled out of the midweek Capital One Cup win over Liverpool with a knee problem. Marouane Fellaini returns after being cup-tied.
West Brom midfielder Claudio Yacob is set to be available having recovered from a dead leg, and Albion head coach Steve Clarke is hopeful forwards Victor Anichebe (ankle) and Nicolas Anelka, who has an unspecified knock, will be able to take part. Chris Brunt (groin) is expected to be missing for a third successive game. Matej Vydra, Zoltan Gera (both hamstring), George Thorne (knee) and Ben Foster (foot) are sidelined.
Last season: West Brom 5 Man Utd 5, Man Utd 2 West Brom 0
Last five league matches: Man Utd W D L W L; West Brom L D L D W
Top scorers: Robin van Persie (Man Utd) 6; Saido Berahino (West Brom) 4
Match Odds: H 1-4 A 9-1 D 4-1
Referee: Michael Oliver (Northumberland).
Southampton (7) v Crystal Palace (19)
Southampton manager Mauricio Pochettino will assess the recovery of the players involved in the Capital One Cup. Tadanari Lee and Gaston Ramirez were among those to impress in the 2-0 defeat of Bristol City, although began to fade in the second half and the latter limped off late on. Rickie Lambert and Dani Osvaldo are set to start in attack, while Nathaniel Clyne will face his former club for the first time since leaving last year.
Crystal Palace will be without defender Damien Delaney because of an ankle problem. Midfielder Kagisho Dikgacoi is set to feature having been suspended for the home defeat by Swansea. Fit-again winger Jerome Thomas could start. Midfielder Yannick Bolasie (hamstring) is still sidelined. Captain Paddy McCarthy (groin) continues his rehabilitation, along with forward Glenn Murray (knee). Midfielder Jonny Williams and defender Jack Hunt (both ankle) are long-term absentees.
Last season: No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches: Southampton W D L D W; Crystal Palace L L W L L
Top scorers: Steven Davis & Gaston Ramirez (Southampton) 2; Marouane Chamakh, Danny Gabbidon, Owen Garvan, Dwight Gayle & Stuart O'Keefe (Crystal Palace) 1
Match Odds: H 1-2 A 6-1 D 3-1
Referee: Martin Atkinson (W Yorkshire).
Swansea (9) v Arsenal (1)
Captain Ashley Williams is a major doubt for Swansea. The Wales defender has been struggling with an ankle injury and manager Michael Laudrup says he has less than a 50 per cent chance of featuring against the Gunners, with Jordi Amat set to deputise. Pablo Hernandez will again miss out to due to a hamstring injury.
Arsenal will give fitness tests to midfielder Aaron Ramsey (thigh) and Mathieu Flamini (shoulder). England forward Theo Walcott has responded well to surgery on a minor abdominal problem and faces up to five weeks recovery time. Tomas Rosicky (thigh) could return for the Champions League game against Napoli, but Santi Cazorla (ankle), Yaya Sanogo (back), Lukas Podolski (hamstring), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Abou Diaby (both knee) are all out.
Last season: Swansea 0 Arsenal 2, Arsenal 0 Swansea 2
Last five league matches: Swansea L L W D W; Arsenal L W W W W
Top scorers: Miguel Michu & Wilfried Bony (Swansea) 5; Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal) 7
Match Odds: H 23-10 A 11-10 D 11-5
Referee: Mark Clattenburg (Tyne & Wear).
Tottenham (2) v Chelsea (4)
Left-back Danny Rose is likely to make his return from a toe injury. Defender Younes Kaboul (adductor) is doubtful, but midfielder Etienne Capoue remains sidelined with an ankle injury. Spurs will give winger Aaron Lennon (foot) a fitness test while striker Emmanuel Adebayor is out through illness.
Chelsea will wait to determine whether midfielder Ramires is fit after the Brazilian suffered a hip injury in Tuesday night's Capital One Cup win at Swindon and was taken off at half-time. Ramires had replaced Marco van Ginkel, who is out for six months after undergoing knee surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
Last season: Chelsea 2 Spurs 2, Spurs 2 Chelsea 4
Last five league matches: Spurs W W L W W; Chelsea W W D L W
Top scorers: Jermain Defoe (Spurs) 6; Oscar (Chelsea) 3
Match Odds: H 8-5 A 6-4 D 11-5
Referee: Mike Dean (Wirral).
Sunday, September 29th
Stoke (10) v Norwich (17)
Stoke manager Mark Hughes has a doubt over Matthew Etherington after he suffered whiplash in a traffic incident on Friday morning. Hughes is hopeful the midfielder will line up against the Canaries. Hughes does not expect to have any more injury concerns and his only change squad-wise is the absence of goalkeeper Jack Butland who has moved to Barnsley on a short-term loan.
Norwich captain Sebastien Bassong remains a doubt. The defender missed the midweek Capital One Cup success over Watford after suffering a hamstring injury in the defeat to Aston Villa. Record-signing Ricky van Wolfswinkel is fit following a toe injury and 18-year-old Josh Murphy remains in the squad after scoring on his debut at Watford.
Last season: Stoke 1 Norwich 0, Norwich 1 Stoke 0
Last five league matches: Stoke L W W D L; Norwich D L W L L
Top scorers: Kenwyne Jones (Stoke) 3; Steven Whittaker, Gary Hooper & Johan Elmander (Norwich) 2
Match Odds: H 1-1 A 5-2 D 11-5
Referee: Anthony Taylor (Cheshire).
Sunderland (20) v Liverpool (5)
Sunderland striker Steven Fletcher will be sidelined for up to six weeks with a shoulder injury. Defender John O'Shea, who came off with a niggle during Tuesday night's 2-0 Capital One Cup victory over Peterborough, is expected to be fit and midfielder Lee Cattermole could also figure after coming through that game unscathed. Full-back Phil Bardsley is close to returning from a broken bone in his foot.
Liverpool defender Daniel Agger is set to return after being left out of the midweek Capital One Cup defeat against Manchester United because of a side strain. Right-back Glen Johnson (ankle) is still out injured. Midfielder Joe Allen (hamstring) is absent while Philippe Coutinho is still recovering from a shoulder operation.
Last season: Liverpool 3 Sunderland 0, Sunderland 1 Liverpool 1
Last five league matches: Sunderland L D L L L; Liverpool W W W D L
Top scorers: Connor Wickham & Emanuele Giaccherini (Sunderland) 2; Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool) 6
Match Odds: H 4-1 A 4-6 D 12-5
Referee: Howard Webb (S Yorkshire).
Monday, September 30th
Everton (6) v Newcastle (12)
Everton manager Roberto Martinez is set to revert back to his first-choice line-up. Goalkeeper Tim Howard, Leighton Baines, Phil Jagielka, Gareth Barry, Ross Barkley and Kevin Mirallas will all come back in. Darron Gibson made his first appearance of the season in midweek but fellow midfielder Steven Pienaar (hamstring) has missed the last two games while Leon Osman sat out Wednesday's match with a groin problem.
Manager Alan Pardew will restore his big guns to the Newcastle starting line-up. Midfielders Yohan Cabaye and Hatem Ben Arfa and striker Loic Remy were rested for the 2-0 Capital One Cup third-round victory over Leeds. Defender Steven Taylor (hamstring) could also be involved, as could striker Shola Ameobi following his recovery from flu, but midfielder Jonas Gutierrez (hamstring) is likely to miss out despite his return to full training.
Last season: Newcastle 1 Everton 2, Everton 2 Newcastle 2
Last five league matches: Everton D D D W W; Newcastle L D W W L
Top scorers: Leighton Baines & Steven Naismith (Everton) 2; Hatem Ben Arfa, Loic Remy & Yoan Gouffran (Newcastle) 2
Match Odds: H 4-7 A 4-1 D 14-5
Referee: Phil Dowd (Staffordshire).
