SPORT: #EPL Team News: Injuries, Suspensions & Line-up

Liverpool Team News: Injuries, Suspensions & Line-up vS Manchester City, Everything you need to know ahead of the Premier League clash at the Etihad on Sunday afternoon

Liverpool are determined to make it five consecutive Premier League wins on the spin against Manchester City as they advance their ambitions of a Champions League spot at the expense of Pep Guardiola’s side.

No manager has recorded more victories (six) over the Spaniard in all competitions than Jurgen Klopp, who expects the Reds to continue their unbeaten form against the current top six.

Sunday’s hosts at the Etihad, meanwhile, have shipped in 23 goals in 12 meetings with the Merseysiders, and need to deliver a strong reaction after slumping out of Europe’s elite competition on away goals to Monaco.

Captain Jordan Henderson (foot) will be unavailable with Klopp hoping “he can run in the second week of the international break” and return for the Merseyside derby against Everton.

LIVERPOOL INJURIES

Captain Jordan Henderson (foot) will be unavailable with Klopp hoping “he can run in the second week of the international break” and return for the Merseyside derby against Everton.

Former City striker Daniel Sturridge is also definitely ruled out with a hip issue.

Dejan Lovren worked on his sharpness after a knee injury by undertaking 75 minutes for Liverpool’s U23s on Monday, while Roberto Firmino has been running outside again.

The Brazilian is expected to return to team training either on Friday or Saturday and will be assessed late on. Divock Origi, meanwhile, is a fresh doubt.

“The icing on the cake is that Divock Origi was off yesterday because he felt a little bit ill – probably not serious but in our situation we have to be really sensitive,” Klopp explained.

“That’s what we did. We will see if he can be involved today or tomorrow, but it’s not 100 per cent.”

LIVERPOOL SUSPENSIONS

Neither team have any suspension concerns.

LIVERPOOL POTENTIAL STARTING LINE-UP

Klopp’s assertion that he has a “few open questions” is spot on both centrally in attack and at the back. He could choose to stick with Ragnar Klavan as Joel Matip’s partner in the heart of defence for consistency with Liverpool winning two on the spin.

The Estonia international was at the heart of defence alongside Lovren for the reverse fixture, which produced a clean sheet.

The real issue is up front, where both Firmino and Origi have missed sessions. The pair can still prove their fitness ahead of the Sunday showdown and with the Brazilian phenomenal in previous outings against City, Liverpool would be massively lifted if he can line up from the off.

MAN CITY TEAM NEWS

City are unbeaten in six Premier League games, but have lost five of their last six top-flight fixtures against Liverpool. This encounter pits together the two best passing teams in the division, who have also averaged the most distance run (the visitors with 117.3km per match and the hosts managing 114.8km).

Both teams have the desire to dominate the ball and assert themselves on proceedings, with the Reds proving how effective they can be out of possession and on the break against City’s expansive play in the 4-1 victory at the Etihad last season.

Klopp’s men will need to be compact, and like they did at Anfield on New Year’s Eve, look to stifle the supply to Sergio Aguero.

Ilkay Gundogan (knee) and Gabriel Jesus (foot) remain on City’s absentee list.

BEST OPTA MATCH FACTS

Liverpool have won four consecutive league games against Man City for the first time since 1981

Manchester City have failed to keep a clean sheet in each of their last 12 games in all competitions against Liverpool, shipping 23 in the process

Sergio Aguero has found the back of the net in all four of his Premier League games versus Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium (four goals).

Philippe Coutinho has scored more Premier League goals versus Manchester City than against any other team (4) in the competition.

KICK-OFF TIME

kick off at 16:30pm BST.

Arsenal Team News; Injuries, Suspensions And Line-Up vS West Brom

Everything you need to know ahead of the Premier League clash at the Hawthorns on Saturday

Arsenal face a tricky lunchtime clash against West Brom on Saturday and manager Arsene Wenger is well aware that the match at the Hawthorns is one his team cannot afford to lose.

The Gunners are 16 points behind league leaders Chelsea and five points off the nearest Champions League spot with two games in hand, and Wenger says it’s all hands on deck as the north Londoners go into a crucial part of the season.

Wenger is under severe pressure himself following a demoralising 10-2 aggregate Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich and the Frenchman refused to comment on reports that Arsenal fans have raised money to fly a ‘No New Contract’ banner over the Hawthorns on Saturday.

Regardless of the noises outside the club, Wenger remains focused on finishing the campaign as strongly as possible.

“We want to play in the Champions League next season. We have a tough job because we have six or seven teams fighting for the places and how well we do until the end of the season will, of course, depend on that,” he said.

“On the rest, we are in the semi-finals of the FA Cup, we have an opportunity to do that as well. So overall those are our targets. After that, success is basically to take the maximum out of the potential of the team. Where is that? We will see.”

ARSENAL INJURIES

Mohamed Elneny has returned to training slightly earlier than expected following an ankle injury and is expected to be named in the squad to face West Brom.

Elneny’s inclusion would increase the number of midfield options Wenger has to choose from, although Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain requires a late fitness test on a hamstring problem.

Kieran Gibbs’s involvement in Saturday’s game is “uncertain” but Nacho Monreal remains likely to start at left-back regardless.

ARSENAL SUSPENSIONS

Arsenal have no suspended players for this match.

ARSENAL POTENTIAL STARTING LINE-UP

The debate over Arsenal’s best central midfield pairing will continue on Saturday as Wenger decides whether to continue with the Xhaka-Ramsey partnership.

Wenger could opt for Francis Coquelin alongside the Swiss if he wants to go more defensive, while in defence Monreal will start at left-back.

Olivier Giroud will almost certainly feature as a No.9 to give Arsenal an added physical presence and the return of Mesut Ozil behind the Frenchman gives the Gunners more creativity.

WEST BROM DOSSIER

West Brom will be confident going into Saturday’s game when they look at Arsenal’s recent league form.

Tony Pulis’ side are the league’s top set-piece scoring team and will look to take advantage of the Gunners defensive vulnerabilities at the Hawthorns.

Pulis has hinted at changing his team after the Baggies failed to score at home against a struggling Crystal Palace side last week, with Nacer Chadli, James Morrison and Chris Brunt all expected to be under threat.

Matty Phillips has been ruled out of the game with a hamstring strain.

Salomon Rondon is their top league scorer with seven goals.

BEST OPTA MATCH FACTS

Tony Pulis has won only one of his last nine Premier League matches against Arsenal (D2 L6), although it came in this exact fixture last season at the Hawthorns (2-1).

Pulis has only lost one of his six previous Premier League home games against Arsenal and Arsene Wenger (W3 D2 L1) and is unbeaten in the last four.

Arsenal have scored in all 21 of their Premier League meetings with West Brom; their best such 100% record in the competition.

Alexis Sanchez has been involved in 26 Premier League goal this season (17 goals, nine assists) – more than any other player in the competition. ;

Since Tony Pulis took charge of WBA in January 2015, the Baggies have scored a higher proportion of goals from set-pieces (47.8% – 43/90) than any other team in the Premier League.

Arsenal have lost three of their last four Premier League matches (W1 D0 L3); the same number of defeats as they had suffered in their previous 32 matches in the competition.

KICK-OFF TIME

Kick off is at 12:30pm on Saturday 18th March

Chelsea team news; Injuries, Suspensions And Line-Up vS Stoke City

Everything you need to know ahead of Monday’s Premier League match at the Bet365 Stadium as the Blues travel to face the Potters.

Antonio Conte will face off against Stoke City on Saturday afternoon as Chelsea focus their attention back on the Premier League after an impressive FA Cup win over Manchester United on Monday.

Mark Hughes’ side are in good form and gave the Blues a scare at Stamford Bridge as they hurt the league leaders in the air, but they ultimately lost in an epic 4-2 thriller.

Chelsea are 10 points clear at the top of the table and are looking like strong favourites to win the title, but a defeat could renew hope for Tottenham and Manchester City, who chase the west London club.

CHELSEA INJURIES

Victor Moses is a major doubt to face his former club Stoke on Saturday after he came off against Manchester United with what is thought to be a calf strain.

He could be out for up to three weeks with the injury, which could see him ruled out of the upcoming international fixtures, as well as the Premier League clash in the midlands.

Antonio COnte has had few other injury problems to contend with this season and the rest of their squad is expected to be fit, despite Manchester United’s rough treatment of Eden Hazard and Diego Costa on Monday.

David Luiz is playing through a minor knee injury that he sustained from Sergio Aguero’s red-card tackle in December but he has been available for all of Chelsea’s big clashes.

Charly Musonda and Kenedy have returned to the club after being recalled from their loan moves at Real Betis and Watford respectively, and will provide cover for the current first team for the remainder of the season.

CHELSEA SUSPENSIONS

Chelsea have no players suspended for the match and have had few issues with discipline all season. John Terry has been their only player to be sent off, in the FA Cup against Peterborough United.

In 2017 the rules altered slightly regarding suspensions for an accumulation of yellow cards, with 10 bookings now being required to acquire a ban. David Luiz and Pedro are three bookings away from a two-match suspension as they are now on seven for the campaign.

N’Golo Kante and Diego Costa have six bookings in domestic competitions, while Nemanja Matic and Cesc Fabregas have five.

CHELSEA POTENTIAL STARTING LINE-UP

Conte is once again set to use his tried and tested first XI. The Blues are having success by making fewer rotations than their rivals while playing in a 3-4-3 formation.

In terms of personnel, Pedro and Willian have been battling it out for a place up top, while Nemanja Matic and Cesc Fabregas compete in central midfield. There are signs that Fabregas is beginning to win the battle over the Serbia international, but Conte recently dropped him again for the more defensive-minded Matic on Monday night.

Diego Costa will lead the line as he competes with the likes of Tottenham’s Harry Kane and Everton’s Romelu Lukaku for the Premier League Golden Boot.

STOKE TEAM NEWS

England goalkeeper Jack Butland remains on the long-term injured list with Lee Grant performing in his place. Mark Hughes will also be without Stephen Ireland who suffered a broken leg during a training session in May last year.

Glen Johnson is out after Hughes reported an injury to his shoulder last week, but Stoke will see the return of their key attacker Marko Arnautovic, who has recovered from his illness.

Mame Biram Diouf and Xherdan Shaqiri were doubts but Hughes has confirmed that they will be available to face Chelsea.

BEST OPTA MATCH FACTS

Cesc Fabregas has assisted seven goals in eight Premier League starts against Stoke, with the Spaniard also netting two in the process.

Indeed, only against Spurs (11) has Fabregas provided more assists in the Premier League than versus Stoke (7).

Diego Costa’s next Premier League goal will be his 50th in the competition and would be the seventh Chelsea player to reach that milestone for the club.

KICK-OFF TIME

Match of the Day on Saturday night. MOTD starts at 22:30 GMT.

Man Utd Team News; Injuries, Suspensions And Line-Up vS Middlesbrough

Everything you need to know ahead of the Red Devils’ Premier League clash at the Riverside Stadium on Sunday

In a stop-start Premier League campaign Manchester United head to the Riverside on Sunday to face Middlesbrough in what is the second of just two league fixtures in a seven-week period between mid-February and the beginning of April.

The short turnaround from their latest Europa League qualification has naturally frustrated Jose Mourinho, but the Red Devils have a job to do against a Boro side who will be looking to make a statement following the sacking of boss Aitor Karanka.

With an international break to come before United then face three league games in eight days, a win to sign off with would be just the tonic for a United side running to stand still at the moment in the Premier League.

MAN UTD INJURIES

Paul Pogba’s early withdrawal with a hamstring injury was the biggest news to come out of Thursday’s win over Rostov and, just as Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s similar strain against Saint-Etienne ruled him out of the EFL Cup final which followed, there is no hope of the Frenchman returning in time to face Boro on Sunday.

Mourinho’s early diagnosis suggested a lay-off of around three weeks, which would see Pogba miss at least three league games in total.

Elsewhere, Daley Blind’s knock to the head at Old Trafford makes him a doubt to make the trip north, but Anthony Martial could come back into contention after returning to training on Wednesday.

Wayne Rooney’s knee problem, sustained in a training-ground collision with Phil Jones, is likely to keep him out for another game, with his exclusion from Gareth Southgate’s England squad evidence of the lack of optimism for a quick return.

Marcos Rojo is chief among those who could be due a rest after Mourinho stated the Portuguese had hit a physical wall late in the game against Rostov following the heavy recent workload

MAN UTD SUSPENSIONS

Since they last stepped out for a Premier League fixture against Bournemouth, United have been hit with a double blow on the disciplinary front. Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s elbow on Tyrone Mings against the Cherries ruled him out of domestic duty for three matches, while Ander Herrera’s first-half dismissal in the FA Cup quarter-final loss to Chelsea sits him out for two games.

Both miss the trip to Middlesbrough as a result, and the pair will again be unavailable when West Brom come to Old Trafford on April 1.

Boro are in the luxurious position of having no current suspension worries.

MAN UTD POTENTIAL STARTING LINE-UP

There are plenty of question marks for Mourinho to consider ahead of Sunday’s game, with this arguably being his most compromised team selection as Manchester United manager.

The suspensions of Ibrahimovic and Herrera are one thing, but the loss of Pogba and Rooney and doubt over Blind add to his woes. Then there are the worries over Martial’s fitness and fears for fatigue to Rojo in particular. Add in a potential change of system again, and United could be all-change for Sunday.

After three games matching up a back three against similar shapes, Mourinho may well decide to revert back to a 4-2-3-1 for Boro, with the midfield almost picking itself due to the absences of Herrera and Pogba. He could decide to forego Marouane Fellaini and play with Michael Carrick behind an attacking midfield quartet, but that may be seen as a risky move away from home.

If Rojo and Blind miss out at the back, Matteo Darmian is likely to be recalled ahead of Luke Shaw, while there has to be a change up front due to Ibrahimovic’s absence. His spot may well go again to Marcus Rashford, with Martial likely to start on the left if fully fit. The only other real quandary relates to the potential inclusion of Jesse Lingard ahead of one of Juan Mata or Mkhitaryan.

MIDDLESBROUGH TEAM NEWS

Middlesbrough’s biggest change by far ahead of Sunday’s game comes in the manager’s office as Steve Agnew takes temporary charge following the midweek sacking of Karanka. Mourinho’s former Real Madrid No.2 had been in charge for three-and-a-half years, taking the club from the verge of relegation to League One to the Premier League but ultimately paid the price for a lack of bite in the final third this term.

Agnew will be hoping to have Calum Chambers, Daniel Ayala, George Friend, Rudy Gestede and Bernardo all available after recent knocks, although Gestede has seen his dismal record at Premier League level extend to only one win in 41 games for three different clubs.

Boro’s record of just nine shots per game in the Premier League this season has them on course to record the lowest strike rate in over a decade, but with talents such as Alvaro Negredo and the lightning quick Adama Traore United will need to be on their toes if Agnew releases the shackles on his players for his first game in charge.

BEST OPTA MATCH FACTS

Middlesbrough are winless in their last 12 meetings with Man Utd in all competitions (D5 L7), although they did progress via penalties in their League Cup clash in October 2015.

The Red Devils have scored in each of their last 14 away league games against Middlesbrough; their longest active streak against a single opponent.

Manchester United’s next win will be their 600th in the Premier League, becoming the first side to reach that landmark.

Middlesbrough’s next loss in the Premier League will be their 1000th defeat in the English top-flight and they would become the 14th team to do so.

This game will see the team who averages the fewest shots on target (Middlesbrough – 2.4 per game) face the team who attempts the most per game (Manchester United – 6.3 per game).

Manchester United are currently on the longest unbeaten run in the Premier League (17 games), while opponents Middlesbrough are on the longest current winless run in the competition (10 games).

KICK-OFF TIME

kicks off at 12:00 (GMT) on Sunday

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