Saturday 13th September 2014
Barclays Premier League
Arsenal v Manchester City (kick off 12:45)
Arsenal are poised to hand Danny Welbeck his debut after his deadline day transfer from Manchester United. Aaron Ramsey is carrying a minor ankle knock and wil be assessed prior to kick off. Mikel Arteta will face a test on his own ankle after the midfielder returned to training this week. Mesut Ozil sprained his ankle on international duty but should be available for selection. However, definitely not involved in the early Saturday kick off are Theo Walcott (knee), Serge Gnabry (knee) and Olivier Giroud (foot).
Manchester City could give debuts to new recruits Frank Lampard and Eliaquim Mangala. Vincent Kompany has already been passed fit following a calf problem while definitely absent will be Fernando (groin) and Stevan Jovetic (hamstring).
Chelsea v Swansea City (kick off 15:00)
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho will delay naming his starting XI until the last possible moment to give Diego Costa every chance of declaring himself fit. The striker is suffering from a hamstring strain. Loic Remy is on standby to lead the line. Apart from Costa, Chelsea will be at full strength.
Swansea have striker issues of their own with Wilfried Bony being assessed prior to kick off after a long journey back to London following an Africa Cup of Nations game midweek. Bafetimbi Gomis is standing by. Leon Britton remains on the sidelines with a hamstring problem.
Crystal Palace v Burnley (kick off 15:00)
On a day of debuts, Crystal Palace will hand one to James McArthur, Kevin Doyle and Zeki Fryers. Andrew Johnson is struggling for full fitness and will not be considered for this game against Burnley. Joe Ledley is back in the fray, while Marouane Chamakh is a definite absentee with a hamstring strain.
Burnley could give all three of their deadline day signings their bows this weekend – George Boyd, Nathaniel Chalobah and Michael Keane. Danny Ings has recovered from an illness while Sam Vokes is a definite absentee with a knee injury.
Southampton v Newcastle (kick off 15:00)
Southampton will be without injured stiker duo Lloyd Isgrove and Sam Gallagher meaning Ronald Koeman will hand a debut to Sadio Mane after the Senegal forward grabbed a goal for his country midweek.
Both Jack Colbert and Chieck Tiote suffered from knocks during the international break but both are available for selection on Saturday for Newcastle. Papiss Cisse is facing another fornight on the sidelines with a knee injury while Siem de Jong is three months away from a return (knee). Rolando Aarons (hamstring) and Facundo Ferreyra (back) are both out.
Stoke v Leicester (kick off 15:00)
Leicester travel to Stoke with new recruits Danny Simpson, Tom Lawrence and Nick Powell all jostling for a place in the starting line-up. Matthew Upson remains sidelined with a foot problem but this game comes too soon for shin injury victim Matty James.
Sunderland v Tottenham (kick off 15:00)
Sunderland are expected to give debuts to new boys Sebastian Coates and Ricky Alvarez, with a full strength squad for Gus Poyet to choose from.
Spurs will travel without Roberto Soldado and Kyle Walker, but their seats on the team bus will be filled by new signings Federico Fazio and Benjamin Stambouli. Nabil Bentaleb won’t be considered after he returned late form international duty.
WBA v Everton (kick off 15:00)
West Brom should have Ben Foster between the sticks on Saturday afternoon after the netminder recovered from a thumb injury sustained midweek. Joleon Lescott has shrugged off a knee injury and could make his Baggies debut. Coming back into the fray after recovering from knocks are Chris Brunt, Gareth McAuley and Graham Dorrens. However, on the casualty list are Youssouf Mulumbu and Victor Anichebe.
The Everton physio will give fitness tests to Samuel Eto’o and Leon Osman – both are carrying minor knocks. Ross Barkley continues to miss out due to a knee injury.
Liverpool v Aston Villa( kick off 17:30)
Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge will miss out as he could be sidelined for up to three weeks with a thigh strain sustained while with England. Midfielder Emre Can is another international duty casualty as he has been ruled out for six weeks with an ankle injury while fellow midfielder Joe Allen returned from playing for Wales with a knee problem which needs to be assessed. Summer signing Adam Lallana is in line for his competitive debut after recovering from a pre-season knee injury but defenders Martin Skrtel, Glen Johnson and Jon Flanagan are all out.
Tom Cleverley should make his Aston Villa debut in the teatime kick off at Anfield. There are several players carrying minor knocks ahead of the game, including Christian Benteke (Achilles) and Libor Kozak (broken leg).
Sunday 14th September 2014
Barclays Premier League
Manchester United v QPR (kick off 16:00)
Manchester United are set to give a plethora of stars their debuts when they entertain QPR on Sunday. Radamel Falcao, Daley Blind, Luke Shaw and Marcos Rojo could all make their bow while Rafael and Ander Herrera have both recovered from their repsective injuries. However, on the casualty list are Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Jesse Lingard, Marouane Fellaini, Michael Carrick and Sam Johnstone.
QPR will be sweating on the fitness of Joey Barton, who is suffering with a hamstring strain. Standing by for their Rangers’ debuts are Sandro and Nico Kranjcar.
