Aston Villa (14) v West Ham (19)
Aston Villa are without right-back Mark Delaney. He is out for a month afterbreaking a bone in his foot during Wales' European Championship qualifier inAzerbaijan in midweek.
West Ham will again be without midfielder Steve Lomas, whose ankle injury isproving more of a problem than first anticipated. Manager Glenn Roeder hopesFrench striker Frederic Kanoute, out with a groin injury since the 3-2 win atChelsea on September 28, will be passed fit to play.
Last season:
Aston Villa 2 West Ham 1, West Ham 1 Aston Villa 1
Last five league matches:
Aston Villa L D D W D, West Ham W L L L D
Top scorers:
Aston Villa - Dion Dublin 4; West Ham - Paolo di Canio 5
Match odds:
H 5-6 A 11-4 D 11-5
Referee:
C Foy (Merseyside).
Bolton (18) v Chelsea (3)
Bolton boss Sam Allardyce has defensive worries with Bernard Mendy (brokenleg) and Bruno N'Gotty (suspended) out and Mike Whitlow (knee) and GudniBergsson (calf) doubtful, although Paul Warhurst could ease the pressure byreturning from a groin strain. Nicky Southall has been recalled from a loanspell at Norwich, while Ricardo Gardner is back from suspension.
Marcel Desailly's knee scan revealed no ligament damage and left the Chelseacaptain clear to play tomorrow. Goalkeeper Ed de Goey has returned to the squadafter his back injury, although winger Boudewijn Zenden's return from an ankleinjury has been delayed by a week due to a minor complication.
Last season:
Bolton 2 Chelsea 2, Chelsea 5 Bolton 1
Last five league matches:
Bolton L D L D W, Chelsea W W D W W
Top scorers:
Bolton - Youri Djorkaeff 4; Chelsea - Gianfranco Zola 9
Match odds:
H 12-5 A 10-11 D 9-4
Referee:
M Dean (Wirral).
Everton (4) v West Brom (20)
Mark Pembridge is out with the calf problem which forced him to miss Sunday'swin at Blackburn and Wales' midweek success in Azerbaijan. A specialist has toldthe midfielder there is no muscular problem with the long-standing injury theWelshman thought had been cured but the club are still awaiting further medicalreports.
Andy Johnson is winning his fitness fight for West Brom after being forced topull out of Wales' midweek match because of a stomach upset. He has showed noill effects when he returned to training.
Last season:
No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:
Everton W W W W W, West Brom D L L D D
Top scorers:
Everton - Kevin Campbell 8; West Brom - Jason Roberts 3
Match odds:
H 4-9 A 6-1 D 5-2
Referee:
J Winter (Cleveland).
Fulham (13) v Liverpool (2)
Fulham welcome back Sean Davis from a fractured toe but Barry Hayles has beentold to put his feet up for another three weeks with a neck vertebrae injury,while Luis Boa Morte is out with the thigh injury which saw him miss Portugal's2-0 success over Scotland on Wednesday.
Liverpool midfielder Dietmar Hamann has declared himself fit after an ankleinjury which ruled him out of Germany's midweek international defeat againstHolland. Stephane Henchoz also returned to full training yesterday but the Swissdefender is unlikely to be rushed back into action and it is more likely hecould make his comeback alongside captain Sami Hyypia in Thursday's UEFA Cupthird round trip to Vitesse Arnhem, with Djimi Traore again deputising.
Last season:
Fulham 0 Liverpool 2, Liverpool 0 Fulham 0
Last five league matches:
Fulham L L L L D, Liverpool W W W L D
Top scorers:
Fulham - Junichi Inamoto 6; Liverpool - Michael Owen 12
Match odds:
H 5-2 A 10-11 D 11-5
Referee:
G Poll (Hertfordshire).
Man Utd (5) v Newcastle (6)
Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has few options because Rio Ferdinand(thigh), David Beckham (ribs), Roy Keane (hip) and Nicky Butt (ankle) are outthrough injury, while Phil Neville is serving a one-match ban. Gary Neville(thigh strain) has an outside chance of being fit, while Ferguson has to decidewhether or not to play Juan Sebastian Veron - who only flew into London thislunchtime after Argentina's friendly in Japan.
Craig Bellamy (knee) is Sir Bobby Robson's only concern as the striker missedWales' Euro 2004 qualifier in midweek to aid his recovery from a knee problem.Hugo Viana (knee), Laurent Robert (fractured cheekbone) and Titus Bramble(hamstring) are all out and central defender Steve Caldwell is suspended,meaning a likely return for Nikos Dabizas.
Last season:
Man Utd 3 Newcastle 1, Newcastle 4 Man Utd 3
Last five league matches:
Man Utd D D W L D, Newcastle L W W L W
Top scorers:
Man Utd - Ruud van Nistelrooy 11; Newcastle - Alan Shearer 9.
Match odds:
H 4-6 A 7-2 D 23-10
Referee:
S Dunn (Avon).
Middlesbrough (7) v Man City (12)
Middlesbrough will be without defender Franck Queudrue, who starts a two-matchban following dismissals in successive games - Tony Vidmar is again likely todeputise. Full-back Robbie Stockdale is again out with his persistent footproblem and 20-year-old Stuart Parnaby should retain his place in the startingline-up.
Gerard Wiekens is set to return for City after overcoming a flu virus. SunJihai is likely to be shifted from central defence to wing-back, with ShaunWright-Phillips losing his place. Marc-Vivien Foe is suspended and Kevin Horlockis likely to take his place.
Last season:
No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:
Middlesbrough L D L W L Man City L W W W L
Top scorers:
Middlesbrough - Massimo Maccarone 4; Man City - Nicolas Anelka
7.
Match odds:
H 8-11 A 3-1 D 12-5
Referee:
N Barry (N Lincolnshire).
Southampton (11) v Arsenal (1)
Southampton midfielder Anders Svensson will undergo a late fitness test afterpicking up a thigh injury during Sweden's 3-3 draw with the Czech Republic onWednesday - Rory Delap is on stand-by to return to the staring line-up ifSvensson does not recover in time. Ecuador striker Agustin Delgado could makehis first league start.
Arsenal striker Thierry Henry played for 70 minutes of France's midweekfriendly against Yugoslavia and Wenger must decide whether he now needs to resta hamstring problem. David Seaman (groin) faces a fitness test while there aredoubts over Freddie Ljungberg (knee), Edu (groin) and Dennis Bergkamp (ribs),while Gilberto Silva is likely to miss out. Lauren, Martin Keown, Ray Parlourand Kanu are longer-term absentees.
Last season:
Arsenal 1 Southampton 1, Southampton 0 Arsenal 2
Last five league matches:
Southampton W W L D L, Arsenal L L W W W
Top scorers:
Southampton - James Beattie 6, Brett Ormerod 6; Arsenal - Thierry
Henry 10
Match odds:
H 7-2 A 4-6 D 23-10
Referee:
P Durkin (Dorset).
Sunderland (17) v Birmingham (15)
Sunderland have added loan signing Mart Poom, Stephen Wright and David Bellionto their squad. Poom, signed on a two-month spell as goalkeeping cover, may haveto be content with a place on the bench. Right-back Wright is available aftersuspension while striker Bellion has recovered from a hamstring injury.
Midfielder Kevin Kilbane has a shoulder injury but is expected to play throughthe pain barrier. Birmingham midfielder Robbie Savage is a major injury worry with a groinproblem, while striker Stern John is struggling to overcome a knee problemalthough a scan has revealed no serious damage. Geoff Horsfield starts athree-match suspension but winger Damien Johnson is back in contention after asix-week lay-off with a hamstring injury.
Last season:
No corresponding fixture
Last five league matches:
Sunderland L D D W D, Birmingham D L W L D
Top scorers:
Sunderland - Tore Andre Flo 5; Birmingham - Stern John 6
Match odds:
H 10-11 A 5-2 D 11-5
Referee:
R Styles (Hampshire).
Sunday, November 24th
Charlton (16) v Blackburn (8)
Charlton midfielder Claus Jensen faces a late fitness test on his calf strainbut Robbie Mustoe (thigh) and Mathias Svensson (ankle) are still sidelined whileJesper Blomqvist this week saw a specialist about his troublesome knee.
Goalkeeper Alan Kelly is expected to return to the Blackburn side as BradFriedel recovers from a knee operation. Turkey midfielder Tugay also misses thematch and although defender Martin Taylor has recovered from a hamstring strain,Damien Duff (calf) and Garry Flitcroft (ankle) face late fitness tests.
Last season:
Blackburn 4 Charlton 1, Charlton 0 Blackburn 2
Last five league matches:
Charlton W L D L W, Blackburn W W D D L
Top scorers:
Charlton - Shaun Bartlett 2, Jason Euell 2, Claus Jensen
2; Blackburn - David Dunn 4
Match odds:
H 11-8 A 13-8 D 21-10
Referee:
D Gallagher (Oxfordshire).
Tottenham (9) v Leeds (10)
Christian Ziege looks set to make his Tottenham return after eight weeks outwith a torn calf muscle, while Ledley King (hip) should also be fit for one ofthe centre-back roles despite pulling out of the England training squad lastweek.
Midfielder Lee Bowyer returns from a one-match suspension and Ian Harte (calf)is fit again but Danny Mills, who has missed the last three games due topersonal problems, picked up an ankle injury, as did Michael Duberry. EirikBakke (ankle) is doubtful while Olivier Dacourt, Lucas Radebe, Seth Johnson,Robbie Fowler and Dominic Matteo are all recovering from long-term injuries.
Last season:
Tottenham 2 Leeds 1, Leeds 2 Tottenham 1
Last five league matches:
Tottenham W L D L L Leeds L D L W L
Top scorers:
Tottenham - Teddy Sheringham 4; Leeds - Harry Kewell, Alan Smith 7
Match odds:
H Evs A 11-5 D 11-5
Referee:
S Bennett (Kent).