This article is part of our Fit or Miss series.
Welcome to "Fit or Miss," our new weekly column tracking all the fantasy-relevant injury news from around the Premier League. We'll be posting this article each Wednesday and updating it throughout the end of the week to help you make the best informed decisions for your fantasy rosters.
In addition to injuries, we'll include card-related and other disciplinary suspensions to keep you up-to-date on who's in and who's out.
This is something new for us, so if you have any suggestions on how to make it better, please leave a comment below.
And without further ado:
Week 1 Injury Updates
Saturday
Liverpool vs. Stoke
- Luis Suarez is out, as he serves game no. five of his 10-match suspension.
- Daniel Agger (knee) had fluid drained from his knee last week but seems fit enough to play. Thursday update: manager Brendan Rodgers said today that he expects Agger to be fit for the Stoke match. Saturday update: Agger is in the Starting XI.
- Daniel Sturridge (ankle) is likely to play after scoring twice in Tuesday's closed-door friendly. He could even get increased playing time with Luis Suarez out. Saturday update: Sturridge is in the Starting XI.
- Steven Gerrard looks go to go after shoulder surgery in May.
- Martin Skrtel withdrew from Slovakia's friendly Wednesday against Romania with a pulled ligament in his knee. His availability for Saturday is cloudy at best. Thursday update: manager Brendan Rodgers said today that he expects Skrtel to be fit for the Stoke match. Saturday update: Skrtel is out.
Sunderland vs. Fulham
- Steven Fletcher is out until September with an ankle injury. Jozy Altidore will likely start in his place.
- Friday update: Newly-acquired Darren Bent is unlikely to play, as he's barely played this preseason.
Arsenal vs. Aston Villa
- Theo Walcott picked up an ankle injury during training with England on Tuesday and may not play Wednesday against Scotland. He's considered questionable for Saturday's match against Aston Villa. Wednesday update: Walcott scored in England's friendly against Scotland on Wednesday, and now seems probable to play Saturday against Aston Villa.
- Nacho Monreal went down with a back injury in July and hasn't returned to training yet.
- Thomas Vermaelen is also dealing with a back injury and is likely to return sometime in September.
- Laurent Koscielny injured his ankle at the end of July but is fit to play.
- Thursday update: Mikel Arteta picked up a serious thigh injury in training this week and is expected to be out for at least a month.
- Thursday update: Bacary Sagna picked up an ankle injury while on international duty this week and is questionable for Saturday.
West Brom vs. Southampton
- Luke Shaw suffered a knee injury in last Saturday's friendly against Real Sociedad and is now questionable to play against West Brom.
West Ham vs. Cardiff City
- Andy Carroll is out, as he continues to sit with a heel injury that will likely keep him off the pitch until at least September.
- Andreas Cornelius is doubtful, but not out, with an ankle injury picked up in training two weeks ago.
Everton vs. Norwich City
- Marouane Fellaini is expected to be fit after recovering from an infection on his legs, although with rumors of a potential Manchester United transfer, he may sit.
- Gary Hooper is battling a shin problem that was deemed not serious after numerous scans. Friday update: Hooper is still not 100 precent but it sounds like he's going to give it a go.
- Anthony Pilkington has withdrawn from the last three Republic of Ireland matches but has not yet been ruled out for the match against Everton. Friday update: Pilkington will not play Saturday.
- Friday update: Sebastien Bassong has not fully recovered from his knee injury and will not play Saturday.
Manchester United vs. Swansea
- Wayne Rooney has been deemed fit enough to play for England but not necessarily for Manchester United. Manager Davd Moyes continues to be coy about Rooney's role with the club, which certainly hampers any fantasy projections.Wednesday update: Rooney played 67 minutes in England's friendly against Scotland today, so he looks fit to play Saturday against Swansea. But again, his status is up to Moyes and is not dependent on his shoulder. - Friday update: Rooney trained with United's first team today and looks probable to play tomorrow.
- Rafael is out with a hamstring injury he sustained during last Sunday's Community Shield against Wigan.
- Ashley Young has been fighting an ankle injury all summer and had to pull out of England's friendly Wednesday against Scotland. After not playing in any preseason tours, it would be difficult to see him suit up for Swansea.
- Friday update: Chicharito is now doubtful with a hamstring injury.
- Friday update: Nani is not expected to play after spending all summer recovering from nose surgery.
- Jonathan de Guzman suffered a concussion during training with Holland this week and isn't expected to play. Friday update: He is out.
Sunday
Chelsea vs. Hull City
- Frank Lampard has been battling back from an Achilles injury all summer but appears likely to play.
- David Luiz (hamstring) appears likely to be fit, although he's been subject to numerous rumors connecting him with FC Barcelona, so he may sit because of a potential move and not an injury.
- Stephen Quinn is out with a hamstring injury that will sideline him for two-to-four weeks.
Crystal Palace vs. Tottenham
- Gareth Bale will likely be held out because of a "foot injury" but everyone knows it's because he's soon-to-be sold to Real Madrid. Thursday update: Bale has been ruled OUT by manager Andre Villas-Boas and he could miss additional Premier League games as his potential transfer to Real Madrid carries on
- Jermain Defoe picked up a hamstring injury during a friendly against Monaco almost two weeks ago but it sounds like he'll be fit enough for Sunday.
- Jan Vertonghen (ankle) has started to run but has not returned to full training yet.
- Lewis Holtby has missed nearly all of Spurs' preseason action, so even if he plays, he hasn't seen match minutes in quite some time. Friday update: Holtby will not play.
- Sandro has almost full recovered from a January knee surgery and should be good to go.
- Friday update: Emmanuel Adebayor will not feature Sunday after returning from compassionate leave Wednesday.
- Glenn Murray is out with a knee injury, with a prospective return in December at the earliest.
- Friday update: Jerome Thomas will miss up to two weeks with an ankle injury and is out for Sunday's match.
Monday
Newcastle vs. Manchester City
- Sergio Aguero battled knee issues all summer but has returned to training and should be fit for Monday. Friday update: Aguero is still on track to play Monday.
- Matija Nastasic will be out another three-to-five weeks with an ankle injury. Friday update: Nastasic has returned to training but is still out for Monday's match. It's possible he could return as soon as August 25 against Cardiff City.
- Loic Remy has been ruled out with a strained calf.
- Hatem Ben Arfa has recovered from surgery in March to repair his hamstring and seems ready to go.
