Late Fitness Check - Week 16

The build-up to game week sixteen is all been about the goalkeepers as Newcastle [Krul & Elliot], Chelsea [Courtois] and Leicester [Schmeichel] all lose their first choice stoppers through injury over the past seven days. Unlucky Arsenal could be missing up to thirteen [13] players for the visit of Newcastle on Saturday but fortunately for them Szczesny [hip] is now fine and David Ospina [thigh] has returned to full training although defensively the Gunners are in deep trouble. Suspensions hit a number of players as five yellow cards trigger an automatic one game ban for Moussa Sissoko, Gareth Barry and Cesc Fabregas while Charlie Austin, Calum Chambers, Lukas Fabianski and Steven Taylor all saw red last weekend.

Burnley – vs – Southampton

Sam Vokes is progressing nicely but Sean Dyche confirms the Clarets striker is still not ready to be considered for first team action - the Welsh international has not featured since March because of an ACL injury. Michael Duff looks set to miss a fourth game with his calf problem while Stephen Ward [ankle] and Matty Taylor [Achilles] remain sidelined. On-loan defender Nathaniel Chalobah is struggling to force his way back into the first team after picking up an injury while on England international duty with the under-21s.

Toby Alderweireld has returned to training following a minor hamstring tear and will be available to face Burnley while James Ward-Prowse [stress fracture] is also set to be in the squad after more than two months out but is unlikely to get any significant game time. A groin injury keeps Morgan Schneiderlin sidelined but the midfielder could return for the Capital One on Tuesday night – Sam Gallagher [knee] and Jack Cork [ankle] are ruled out. Jay Rodriguez has suffered a setback in his rehabilitation from an ACL rupture.

Chelsea – vs – Hull City

Petr Cech will come in for his first Premier League start of the season – Thibaut Courtois suffered a minor muscular problem in training and just misses out. Cesc Fabregas is suspended but Nemanja Matic is available again and he could slot straight back into the side – Andre Schurrle and Mohamed Salah were singled out for praise following the win over Sporting. Nathan Ake is close to a return following a hamstring injury.

Steve Bruce could recall Captain Curtis Davies after missing the two previous games – his return could mean a defensive change with Hull opting to go three at the back against Chelsea. Mo Diame [knee] is expected to miss another 10-14 days but Gaston Ramirez has completed a three-game ban and will return to the squad. Newcastle loanee Hatem Ben Arfa is not expected to feature having fell out-of-favour recently although the Tigers boss denies any rift. Nikica Jelavic should start having been restricted to a place on the bench against West Brom because of illness.

Crystal Palace – vs – Stoke City

Damien Delaney will be pushing for a start having fully recovered from a calf problem – the defender was an unused substitute at White Hart Lane last weekend. Jason Puncheon will face a late fitness test after missing training on Thursday through illness while Joe Ledley is struggling with an ongoing hip complaint – the midfielder is rated as very doubtful. Adrian Mariappa [knee] is around two / three weeks away from a return.

Marc Wilson could replace Marc Muniesa at Selhurst Park if the defender fails a late fitness test - the Spaniard tweaked his hamstring during the win over Arsenal last time out – Robert Huth is also available but the German has struggled to hold down a place in the starting eleven. Jonathan Walters is managing an ongoing knee problem but is expected to feature - Steve Sidwell, Peter Odemwingie [both knee], Victor Moses [thigh] and Dionatan Teixeira [broken foot] will all miss out. Marko Arnautovic [groin problem] should return.

Leicester City – vs – Manchester City

Foxes goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel has been ruled out for at least six weeks after breaking a metatarsal in training on Thursday – the Danish stopper is expected to have surgery today and could miss up to two months. Ben Hamer will step in for his second start of the season. Wes Morgan returns from suspension while Paul Konchesky won his appeal midweek for his sending-off against Villa meaning he will also be included in the match-day squad. Ritchie De Laet [illness], Dean Hammond [calf] and leading scorer Leonardo Ulloa have all recovered from their various knocks and ailments. Matthew Upson is close to a return but won’t be rushed back following foot surgery in the summer.

Captain Vincent Kompany returns to the City squad after just missing out in Rome on Wednesday – the Belgium threatens the place of Mangala or Demichelis in the heart of defence. David Silva had no reaction to his 30 minute cameo at the Stadio Olympico and should be fine although Pellegrini will give the midfielder one last check before the game. Matija Nastasic [thigh] remains sidelined. With Sergio Aguero ruled out Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic vie to lead the line in a 4-5-1 which proved so effective in the Champions League midweek.

Sunderland – vs – West Ham

Sebastien Coates will be added to the Blacks Cats squad after missing out at Anfield under the terms of his loan agreement. Emanuele Giaccherini and Billy Jones will miss out but the pair are expected to return to training towards the end of this week meaning they should be available for the Tyne-Wear derby in game week 17. Steven Fletcher “is fully fit” and should replace Jozy Altidore who was ineffective against Liverpool – the Scottish international could be partnered with Conor Wickham in a 4-4-2 while Lee Cattermole is pushing for a recall. Patrick van Aanholt is absent.

Mark Noble is once again expected to miss out as West Ham travel to the Stadium of Light to take on Sunderland – a similar result to last season would mean the Hammers will move back into third place ahead of Manchester Uniteds’ game on Sunday. The midfielder has struggled recently due a calf problem and was close to a return in GW15 but suffered a setback with a separate Achilles injury in training. However there was better news for full-back Carl Jenkinson after limping out of the win over Swansea – further tests revealed the defender was suffering from cramp and did not strain his hamstring. With an almost fully fit squad Allardyce will have a number of difficult decisions to make. A man-of-the match performance by Andy Carroll secures his place but Enner Valencia made way at half-time for Diafra Sakho who linked up well scoring during his 45 minute appearance.

West Brom – vs – Aston Villa

Chris Brunt just misses out after the captain limped out of the disappointing draw with Hull - the midfielder was hopeful earlier this week but falls a little short. James Morrison [knee] is fine while Youssouf Mulumbu [hamstring] and Stephane Sessegnon [calf] have both returned to training and should be okay. Victor Anichebe is managing an ongoing groin complaint which will be assessed – if the striker does miss out then Saido Berahino or Brown Ideye will be expecting to get the nod. Claudio Yacob returns from suspension but Jonas Olsson is still out – the defender is recovering from Achilles surgery.

Fabian Delph could make a surprise return to the Villa squad this weekend – the England international has recovered from a dislocated shoulder and will be assessed further on Friday. Defender Ron Vlaar also comes back into contention following a calf strain but a scan midweek confirmed Ashley Westwood will be sidelined for around a month because of knee ligament damage. Tom Cleverley is rated as “very doubtful” with a badly bruised foot but Paul Lambert will give his on-loan midfielder every chance to prove his fitness. Andi Weimann completes a one game ban and with Joe Cole [hamstring] around 7-10 days away. Nathan Baker [knee] is close with Libor Kozak the only long term absentee as Villa look to make it six games unbeaten.

Arsenal – vs – Newcastle United

Arsenal suffered a blow with the news that Aaron Ramsey [hamstring] could be out for up to a month while Laurent Koscielny [calf] and Nacho Monreal [ankle] are all out of Saturdays’ clash with Newcastle. However Alexi Sanchez, Olivier Giroud and Danny Welbeck are all "fit and rested" after they missed the midweek trip to Turkey - Kieran Gibbs and Mathieu Flamini are also available after recovering from minor knocks. Mikel Arteta and Theo Walcott are still at least 10-14 days away but David Ospina and Tomas Rosicky have returned to full training. Mathieu Debuchy played 70+ minutes on Tuesday night and his services maybe required once again due to the absence of Calum Chambers through suspension.

Fabricio Coloccini [hamstring] is set to recover from a minor muscular issue but manager of the month [November] Alan Pardew has a lot of injuries to contend with. With Tim Krul [ankle] and Rob Elliot [thigh] out Newcastle have been forced to travel with third choice goalkeeper Jak Alnwick who made his competitive debut during the win over Chelsea last weekend. Rolando Aarons [hamstring] is no closer to a return with Siem de Jong, Davide Santon and Ryan Taylor all missing until the New Year. Mehdi Abeid [broken toe] could be risked if needed but Moussa Sissoko and Steven Taylor are suspended.

Manchester United – vs – Liverpool

Louis van Gaal confirms Angel Di Maria will miss Sundays’ clash with Liverpool because of a hamstring strain – the Argentine is one of four players missing through injury - Luke Shaw and Daley Blind are the others while Chris Smalling could be out for around two weeks after suffering a groin injury on Monday night. Phil Jones, Jesse Lingard, Rafael and Anderson are all available – in theory – but lack match-fitness.

Brendan Rodgers will give Mario Balotelli every chance to prove his fitness – the Italian striker has recently recovered from a groin problem and returned to training this week. Adam Lallana has been playing since the Leicester City game with a rib injury but the player seems to be over the worst of his problems which should see an increase in game time over the next few matches. Kolo Toure missed the game versus FC Basel because of a groin injury but the defender does come back into contention. Daniel Sturridge continues his rehab in LA while Suso [groin] and Jon Flanagan [knee] make steady progress.

Swansea City – vs – Tottenham Hotspur

Swansea will be missing goalkeeper Lukas Fabianski after the FA rejected their appeal against his sending-off at the Boleyn Ground last Sunday but in Gerhard Tremmel the Jacks have a more than able back-up. Frederico Fernandez is closing in on a return after more than a month out but he will face a straight up fight with Kyle Bartley to regain his place in the side. Neil Taylor completes a one game ban and could come back in after the disappointing defeat to West Ham.

Andros Townsend, Etienne Capoue and Kyle Walker all returned for Spurs on Thursday night while Nacer Chadli managed 90 minutes in the Europa League. Aaron Lennon, Ben Davies and Hugo Lloris made the bench suggesting they should feature against Swansea at the Liberty Stadium. Harry Kane, Bentaleb, Mason, Eriksen and Naughton all remained in London – Emmanuel Adebayor is the only definite absentee after the striker was granted permission to return home due to personal reasons.

Everton – vs – Queens Park Rangers

Roberto Martinez will run the rule over Bryan Oviedo, Steven Pienaar and Arouna Kone ahead of Monday nights’ match – all will feature if cleared. James McCarthy, Darron Gibson and Steven Naismith face a late fitness test while defender John Stones has returned to full training. The England international was expected to be out until January but has already been with the main group and comes into consideration. Christian Atsu injured his thigh during the Europa League match on Thursday and will have a scan to confirm the extent of the problem – Gareth Barry is suspended.

The Hoops will be without their leading scorer Charlie Austin for Mondays’ visit to Goodison Park – the striker is suspended after his sending-off during the win over Burnley. Sandro [knee] and Adel Taarabt [groin] are the only other confirmed absentees as Steven Caulker is fit despite needing hospital treatment on a cut sustained to his head while “falling over” during a social occasion with team-mates last Sunday.