Barclays Premier League
Saturday 6th December
Newcastle v Chelsea (kick off 12:45)
Newcastle will be boosted by the return of Moussa Sissoko an Jack Colback as the pair have completed their suspensions. A hamstring injury will most likely keep Fabricio Coloccini on the sidelines while Mike WIlliamson, Daryl Janmaat and Sammy Ameobi are all doubtful with minor knocks and will all face fitness tests.
Chelsea can welcome Diego Costa back into the matchday squad after a ban and he’ll go straight into the starting line-up. Gary Cahill has been passed fit after a head injury but Nemanja Matic will miss out due to a suspension.
Hull v WBA (kick off 15:00)
Hull can welcome back Abel Hernandez after the Uruguayan returned form his homeland to witness the birth of his child. However, it is thought that Sone Aluko may keep his place in the team. Definite absentees are Gaston Ramirez (banned) and Mohamed Diame (knee).
West Brom make the tricky trip to Hull without their captain Chris Brunt. The midfielder took a knock midweek and won’t be risked this weekend. Also missing the trip are the banned Claudio Yacob and Jonas Olsson (Achilles) but Sebastien Pocognoli and James Morrison are on the team bus after recovering from a dead leg and illness respectively.
Liverpool v Sunderland (kick off 15:00)
Liverpool may rest skipper Steven Gerrard for the visit of Sunderland on Saturday afternoon ahead of The Reds’ Champions League clash with Basel on Tuesday at Anfield. Expect Philippe Coutinho to be involved against Sunderland after he recovered from a knee problem while Jose Enrique is also expected to feature after a recent knee operation.
Sunderland will draft Adam Johnson and Wes Brown back into their starting line-up as they bid to get back to winning ways. On-loan defender Sebastien Coates is not eligible to face his parent club while Steven Fletcher has a back injury an may miss out.
QPR v Burnley (kick off 15:00)
QPR have no fresh concerns ahead of a winnable match at Loftus Road. Adel Taarabt (groin), Sandro and Alejandro Faurlin (both knee) all remain on the sidelines but Bobby Zamora is fit enough after a back problem to take a seat on the bench.
Burnley will probably be without ankle injury victim Stephen Ward and calf strain sufferer Michael Duff ahead for their tricky trip to London. Sam Vokes is another definite absentee as he recovers from a long-term knee injury, though he is back in training.
Stoke v Arsenal (kick off 15:00)
Stoke have several first teamers on the sidelines. Stephen Ireland is ill and will probably miss out while fitness tests will be administered to Jonathan Walters and Roberth Huth on minor knocks. Glenn Whelan is struggling with a calf problem and may not feature, while definite casualties include Steve Sidwell, Peter Odemwingie (both knee), Victor Moses (thigh) and Dionatan Teixeira (broken foot).
Similarly, Arsenal are coping with a lengthy injury list occupied by Theo Walcott (groin), Mikel Arteta (calf), Mesut Ozil (knee), David Ospina (thigh), Abou Diaby (calf), Jack Wilshere (ankle) and Nacho Monreal (ankle). The club physio will give late assessments to Laurent Koscielny (achilles), Wojciech Szczesny (hip), Tomas Rosicky (thigh), Kieran Gibbs (hip) and Yaya Sanogo (calf).
Tottenham v Crystal Palace (kick off 15:00)
Crystal Palace will travel across London with Joe Ledley due to a recurrence of a troublesome hip injury. He’ll join Damien Delaney and Adrian Mariappa on the treatment table. Dwight Gayle is back in the squad following a brief illness.
Manchester City v Everton (kick off 17:30)
Yaya Toure has a sore throat but will feature for Manchester City on Saturday. Stevan Jovetic will be rested and injured duo Vincent Kompany and David Silva will miss out.
Everton should be able to recall Antolin Alcaraz for the trip to Manchester City on Saturday evening. He’s been absent for the past six gams with a shoulder injury which has now cleared up. Also coming back into the fray are Arouna Kone and Bryan Oviedo after recent injuries. However, definitely missing out are Steven Naismith, James McCarthy (both hamstring) and Darron Gibson (knee).
Sunday 7th December
West Ham v Swansea (kick off 13:30)
West Ham are hoping trio Mark Noble, Diafra Sakho and Alex Song are all passed fit ahead fo their early Sunday kick off with Swansea. The latter two have the best chance of featuring. Enner Valencia made his comeback from injury midweek while Andy Carroll is fully fit following a lengthy lay off.
Swansea will travel to London without Neil Taylor, who is serving a suspension. Expect Dwight Tiendalli or Jazz Richards to fill in at left back. Angel Rangel will come back into the team at right back while Leon Britton will face a fitness test close to kick off on his knee. Federico Fernandez is a definite absentee.
Aston Villa v Leicester (kick off 16:00)
Aston Villa will be without hamstring victim Joe Cole for the visit of Leicester on Sunday. Andreas Weimann is banned while on the casualty list are Ron Vlaar, Fabian Delph, Philippe Senderos and Nathan Baker.
Leicester must run out against West Ham without their captain Wes Morgan – the defender is banned. David Nugent is sick and will probably miss out while there are some other unnamed squad members also ill and will be given the maximum amount of time to recover.
