Team Talk Gameweek 13

Welcome to GW13 and it’s a game-week that starts off a hectic run of 3GWs in just ten days, meaning there are lots of points to be gained, but also stressing the need for careful consideration regarding transfers as needless point hits could easily see your team slip a few places in your mini-league. The old addage ‘Patience is a virtue’, is the order of the day. Thus, it is equally important to study the manager’s press conferences after a busy week of European action for some teams and ongoing injury concerns for others.

The game-week kicks off on Saturday with five 3pm games as Arsenal seek to extend their lead at the top when they go to Cardiff, Villa host Sunderland, Stoke visit Everton and there’s two relegation six-pointers as Palace travel to Norwich and West Ham host London neighbours Fulham. In the evening, WBA visit Newcastle. Sunday starts as Spurs host Man Utd, then Liverpool go to Hull before Chelsea entertain Southampton and Man City welcome Swansea to the Etihad.

So, without further ado, let’s go Around the Grounds and check up on the latest team news.

Aston Villa vs Sunderland (Sat 30 Nov 15.00)

Bottom of the table Sunderland visit Villa Park on the back of a shocking run of five successive losses on the road, while Villa will be buoyed from their second half comeback on Monday night against neighbours West Brom, which saw them claw back a 2-0 deficit to come away with a point. Paul Lambert’s men have good memories of this fixture, having completed the double against the Black Cats last season, which included a Christian Benteke hat-trick in a 6-1 victory.

This week has been fairly encouraging for the Black Cats manager Gus Poyet – firstly Wes Brown had the red card he picked up at Stoke, rescinded, meaning he is available this week, while Lee Cattermole returns from suspension, as will Andrea Dossena, if he can shake off a knock. Keeper Keiren Westwood is expected to have recovered from injury and Modibo Diakite is back in training after missing the last seven games. Ex-Villain Carlos Cuellar misses out though, he has been ruled out for a few weeks with a hip injury.

Suffering Benteke owners will be delighted to learn that fellow forwards Gaby Agbonlahor & Andreas Weimann are now fully fit after coming through the second half of Monday’s match unscathed. Defender Antonio Luna has recovered from a hamstring injury that has sidelined him for three matches, Fabian Delph could be looking at more game time and Marc Albrighton has returned to the club after a short-spell on loan at Wigan. Midfielder Gary Gardner has resumed training after a back complaint but Charles N’Zogbia & Jores Okore remain out.

Cardiff City vs Arsenal (Sat Nov 30 15.00)

Arsenal travel to Cardiff knowing a win would take them seven points clear at the top as they are the only team in the top six playing on Saturday, but they won’t have it all their own way against Malky Mackay’s side who can clearly raise their game against the big boys, having beaten Man City earlier in the season and deservedly holding Man Utd to a draw last week.

Arsene Wenger reports no new injuries from the midweek win over Marseille. Defender Kieran Gibbs has recovered from his sickness and returns while Mikel Arteta has enjoyed a rest. Striker Lukas Podolski is back in training, but is weeks away from a return to the first-team, while winger Alex-Oxlade Chamberlain and midfielder Abou Diaby are longer term casualties. With the Gunners still needing a point from their final CL game in Napoli to guarantee qualification, the manager has already said he will rotate his squad before then, so be prepared for the odd surprise…and maybe disappointment. It remains to be seen if Theo Walcott will start the game, while Aaron Ramsey makes a return to his first club.

Cardiff report no new injuries and are likely to keep the same squad that performed so well at home to Man Utd last week. Midfielder Gary Medel escaped disciplinary action for doing what most United fans wanted to do themselves, namely slapping Marouane Fellaini.

Everton vs Stoke (Sat 30 Nov 15.00)

Mark Hughes takes his Stoke team to one of his former clubs, Everton, still searching for their first win on the road since August, while the Toffees are on an impressive unbeaten run of five games, although the last three have all been drawn. This fixture doesn’t traditionally produce many goals with no more than two goals being scored in any of the last eight games between the two. Don’t be surprised to see an own goal in this one – two of Everton’s last three goals vs Stoke have been own goals, while Toffee centre-back Phil Jagielka has put through his own net twice vs Stoke in the Premier League – be warned!

Roberto Martinez has confirmed that Leighton Baines fractured toe will keep him out of action for a while, but the timing of his return is unclear right now. The influential left-back has played every minute of the club’s previous 51 matches before he was replaced against Liverpool last weekend. Martinez is confident that he has enough cover and he mentioned Gareth Barry and Bryan Oviedo as more than worthy replacements for Baines’ spot. Fellow defender Antolin Alcaraz played 45mins for the reserves in the week, but will not be rushed into the first-team match-day squad. Darron Gibson and Arouna Kone are the only other absentees for the Toffees, though there has been a sickness bug going around the club this week, which has interrupted training, but Martinez doesn’t expect any of the players to be affected for the visit of the Potters. The manager also praised Gerard Deulofeu, who he said has progressed quicker than he thought and he expects him to get more game time now.

Hughes says he will be without winger Marko Arnautovic for a couple of weeks and defender Robert Huth for a while longer, as he is set for knee surgery, but Stephen Ireland should be ok after recovering from a shin injury. Marc Wilson and Kenwyne Jones are all expected to be available again.

Norwich vs Crystal Palace (Sat 30 Nov 15.00)

The Canaries meet the Eagles at Carrow Road as Tony Pulis takes charge of Palace for the first time and looks for his team to build on their impressive win at Hull last weekend, while Norwich will be hoping to improve on a disappointing recent run that has seen them win just once in six matches. Pulis has never been relegated as a manager, a fact that may bring confidence to the Selhurst Park faithful, as will the stat that Palace have won six of their last ten matches against Norwich.

Palace will be without the suspended Yannick Bolasie, who was sent off in the win at Hull and  failed in the week to get his red card overturned. Striker Marouane Chamakh should return following his head injury, but Jerome Thomas and Paddy McCarthy face late fitness tests. Glenn Murray and Adlene Guedioura will miss out but Jonny Williams will be pushing for a return to the starting XI.

Chris Hughton has even more problems though as his squad is riddled with injuries – midfielders Robert Snodgrass and Anthony Pilkington are both out for several weeks, striker Ricky van Wolfswinkel has not yet recovered from a foot injury, while midfielders  Elliott Bennett and  Alex Tettey are longer-term absentees. Much will depend on the recent good form of Leroy Fer and young starlet Nathan Redmond could get another decent run in the first-team.

West Ham vs Fulham (Sat 30 Nov 15.00)

West Ham’s second successive home “east meets west” London derby sees Fulham the visitors in a game that, due to both club’s poor recent form, is a tough one to call – the Hammers haven’t won in five, while Fulham have lost their last four. With both clubs stuck in the relegation mix and separated only by goal difference, the Hammers will be hoping the home faithful will be influential as they haven’t lost a home league fixture to Fulham since 2001.

Big Sam is pleased to report no new injuries and the squad will be the same as last weekend, meaning defender Razvan Rat again misses out with a hamstring injury. At last some positive news on Andy Carroll, who should be ready to begin light training next week, but a comeback still appears to be a while off yet. Winston Reid, Mladen Petric, Ricardo Vaz Te and  Alou Diarra continue to miss out.

Martin Jol reveals that striker Dimitar Berbatov is a doubt due to illness, while defender Sascha Reither misses out again through suspension. Brede Hangeland is close to a comeback but will need a final assessment before the game, while defender Matthew Briggs and striker Hugo Rodallega remain out.

Newcastle vs West Brom (Sat 30 Nov 17.30)

Steve Clarke returns to Newcastle to take on a resurgent Toon, who, having won their last three have climbed into the top half of the league and sit, amazingly, just two points off fourth place, while the Baggies have turned into the draw specialists of the league, with six draws so far this season, a stat that is frustrating Clarke as he looks for a more clinical edge from his side. Having won just one of their last eight away games, West Brom definitely need to up their game on the road, but Alan Pardew is expecting a tough, close game, while anyone looking for a clean sheet here should be aware that neither side has kept one in the last eight meetings between the two.

Steve Clarke is quickly learning from David Moyes when giving injury updates. He said the only definite absentee is keeper Ben Foster, but there are a  “few other doubts”, which, in “Cookie-speak” translates to  Liam Ridgewell, Scott Sinclair, Billy Jones and Zoltan Gera are all nearing a comeback and could  have a chance of being included this weekend.

Newcastle welcome back defender Mathieu Debuchy from suspension and Pardew says everyone else is fit, with the exception of long term casualty Ryan Taylor. The manager is looking forward to a more positive season than last year and says that the training this week has been the best since he arrived at the club. Mike Williamson is expected to keep his place at the back.

Tottenham vs Man Utd (Sun 1 Dec 12.00)

White Hart Lane has been a happy hunting ground for United over the years, with Spurs not winning this fixture since 2001 and David Moyes will be hoping that AvB’s men will still be in shock following their embarrassing drubbing at the Etihad last weekend. The Champions, however, were shocked, not only by Cardiff’s last minute equaliser but also their poor performance, which halted United’s run of three successive wins as they looked to be turning their season around. The Reds will be buoyed however by their midweek 5-0 victory over Leverkusen, with Wayne Rooney again impressing, setting up four of the goals – his league record is even more impressive this season as he has either scored or assisted in nine of the eleven matches in which he has featured.

True to form, Moyes was his usual reticent self in his press conference, saying that RvP, Nemanja Vidic and Rafael all “have a chance” of playing at the weekend. Michael Carrick continues to sit on the sidelines and is a massive loss to the Reds, as was evident at Cardiff last weekend. Many United fans will be hoping that the midweek victory will mean increased playing time for Shinji Kagawa, while Danny Welbeck made the bench in the week and could be involved on Sunday.

Spurs striker Emmanuel Adebayor is a doubt with a groin injury, while midfielder Christian Eriksen, defender Danny Rose and striker Harry Kane remain on the sidelines. Jermain Defoe may get a rare start against United after fellow striker Roberto Soldado started Thursday night’s Europe League victory over Tromos.

Hull City vs Liverpool (Sun 1 Dec 14.05)

Hull welcome Liverpool to the KC Stadium still looking for their first ever win against the Reds, although how confident they will be is questionable bearing in mind that Steve Bruce’s men have lost four of their last five, including last week’s home defeat to Palace, while Liverpool are scoring for fun right now, notching 19 goals in their last seven matches.

Brendan Rodgers says that Daniel Sturridge has trained “exceptionally well” this week and it seems he is likely to regain his place in the starting XI for Sunday’s game, in place of Joe Allen. The manager has no other fresh injury concerns, so the biggest question mark appears to be the left-back position. With Jose Enrique ruled out until February, it was Jon Flanagan who got the nod against Everton, although some local reports suggest Aly Cissokho may also get a chance at some point.

Hull have a couple of issues at the back as Paul McShane tore a hamstring last week and is out, while Curtis Davies also took a knock in the game, but Bruce is hopeful he’ll make the game. Alex Bruce is likely to replace McShane in defence. Midfielder Stephen Quinn and striker Sone Aluko both miss out, but defender James Chester may return to the bench after two months out. Robbie Brady, who came off at half-time last week, is fit to play.

Chelsea vs Southampton (Sun 1 Dec 16.10)

Having lost in the capital last weekend, Southampton journey to London again this weekend to face a Chelsea side who have climbed up to third in the table, following last weekend’s clinical win at West Ham. The Saints were masters of their own downfall at the Emirates with keeper Artur Boruc having his second shocker in three games – and manager Mauricio Pochettino will have spent this week emphasising the need to cut out these silly errors if they have realistic hopes of challenging for a CL place. For those managers who hold Frank Lampard and Rickie Lambert it’s worth noting that Lambert scored in both matches vs Chelsea last season, while Lampard has scored four goals in his last five league matches against the Saints.

Jose Mourinho is another manager talking about rotation with the fixtures coming thick and fast – don’t be surprised therefore if your chosen Blues midfielder is given the odd game off. What we know for sure is that Samuel Eto’o is out for around a fortnight and David Luiz won’t be fit for the weekend, meaning another run out for Gary Cahill alongside John Terry, while Fernando Torres is likely to be favoured over Demba Ba up front – that move has really worked out well Demba, eh?!! The Special One also inferred that Ashley Cole will regain his place at left-back.

Pochettino has confirmed that defenders Luke Shaw and Dejan Lovren, plus in-form midfielder Adam Lallana have all trained and are fit for the clash at the Bridge, meaning the Saints go into the game with a near fully fit squad.  The manager says he has great respect for Mourinho and that he has learnt a lot from the Portuguese manager, but that friendship goes out of the window for 90mins on Sunday as a win for Southampton would see them leapfrog the Blues and keep their CL dream alive.

Man City vs Swansea (Sun 1 Dec 16.10)

Can anyone stop City at the Etihad ? Played six, won six, goal difference of +24 doesn’t bode well for the visiting Swans in what may turn out to be a damage limitation exercise if Manuel Pellegrini’s men decide to turn it on like they did vs Spurs & Norwich. However, it’s worth bearing in mind that the last three matches between these two have produced just two goals and with Swansea getting back on the winning trail last week at Fulham, they’ll turn up at the Etihad with more ambition than to just make up the numbers.

Swansea suffered a double blow during Thursday night’s loss to Valencia as striker Wilfried Bony and full-back Angel Rangel both suffered injuries. Bony is likely to be out for a number of weeks after suffering a hamstring injury, while Rangel picked up a calf injury late on. It is thought that Alvaro Vasquez and Dwight Tiendalli will replace the pair. Michu continues to miss out with an ankle injury, but better news of Pablo Hernandez, who made his comeback when he came off the bench for the final 24mins against Valencia. Wayne Routledge could return against City.

City captain Vincent Kompany is back in training and is thought to be fit, but not match-fit, so is unlikely to be risked this weekend, especially as Swansea have both their main striker’s out, while fellow central defender Matija Nastasic is likely to be out for three weeks with a  calf injury. Joleon Lescott & Martin Demichelis are expected to renew their partnership in the middle of the back four.  David Silva and Stevan Jovetic are not due back until mid-December, but Jack Rodwell is fit for Sunday. Owners of Sergio Aguero will be pleased to know that he didn’t suffer an injury in City’s CL game in the week – the manager said it was already decided he was only going to play the first half. Pellegrini would not be drawn as to who will start in goal, though reports suggest Costel Pantilimon will again get the nod over Joe Hart, despite the latter starting in the CL midweek victory.

This Article was written by Cookie