Ahead of the Premier League returning this weekend after the international break there is plenty of team news to catch up on.
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Kevin de Bruyne is back fit and available to play for Manchester City after injuring his knee back in August, with Pep Guardiola confirming he is ready for selection against Burnley on Saturday (Watch live, 10 a.m. ET online via NBCSports.com).
The Belgium star was said to be out until the end of November but he is back fully-fit way ahead of schedule.
“I don’t know if he is able to play 90 minutes. He’s trained well last two weeks,” Guardiola confirmed. “He’s such an important player for us. Whenever a player is out, I like it when they come back - we will be stronger.”
So, good news for league leaders and reigning champs Man City.
Not such great news for Chelsea or Liverpool, though.
Ross Barkley, who has been in fine form for Chelsea and England so far this season, has picked up a knock during the international break. Sarri confirmed that Barkley’s issue is a small problem and he will likely be out for a few days, which could mean he misses the clash against Manchester United (Watch live, 7:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN and online via NBCSports.com) on Saturday.
“As usual after the national teams we have some problems” Sarri said. “The most serious is with Ethan Ampadu. We have a little problem with Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ross Barkley, which are less serious. Antonio Rudiger has done better in the last two days, like Mateo Kovacic. I think they will be able to play.”
Chelsea’s midfield trio of N’Golo Kante, Barkley and Jorginho have been superb this season with a great balance of defensive and attacking play. That said, having the likes of Mateo Kovacic and Cesc Fabregas to step in isn’t bad at all...
As for Liverpool, their injury situation over the international break has been well documented with Virgil van Dijk, Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Naby Keita all picking up knocks.
Keita will not be available to play against Huddersfield Town on Saturday (Watch live, 12:30 p.m. ET on NBC online via NBCSports.com) after picking up a hamstring injury.
“We had a session yesterday and a few trained. We’ll have to see how they react, but Naby Keita will not be available for Huddersfield,” Klopp said.
With James Milner battling back early from a hamstring injury he picked up against Manchester City before the break, Liverpool will have plenty of options in midfield. If Mane or Salah aren’t risked either, then Klopp does have the likes of Daniel Sturridge and Xherdan Shaqiri waiting in the wings. The next few weeks will test Liverpool’s squad depth.