šļø Press Conference ā Injuries
You know that whole Arne Slot Penitentiary thing on Twitter? Yeah, so Fabian HĆ¼rzeler has his own version of that.
The Fabian HĆ¼rzeler Medical Centre.
Okay, so Igorās out for the season. Long live a high defensive line and the strain it puts on hamstrings. But Lewis Dunk is expected to be back, which is always nice:
āYeah, I thinkā¦ Lewis will be back, so he will train today. Adam [Webster] is there, JP is there, so these are the three centrebacks that are available.ā
Bit harsh on Ruari McConnville, but oh well.
As for JoĆ£o Pedro, Fabian HĆ¼rzeler had a lot to say:
āYeah we have to see today. So he will train with the team, and then we will decide if we take the risk, and we wonāt take any riskāonly if itās a calculated risk, and if he feels well, so thatās the most important that also the player feels confident with his body, so we wonāt do any stupid things, but we have to wait for training session today and maybe also tomorrow.ā
Has it been a frustrating season for him? It feels like itās been disrupted quite a bit with injury?
āYeah it seems to be that he didnāt get into his rhythm but I talked to him yesterday for a long time and heās quite in a comfortable placeāhe enjoys it, heās happy with the performanceāof course, heād like to be on the pitch every game but sometimes your body doesnāt want the same thing so you have to adapt, but in the end I think heās in a good place. Heās performing quite good when heās on the pitch, of course he had also some bad phases already, but in the end thatās normal, we shouldnāt miss or forget thatās he still a very young player. So thatās why Iām happy with him and Iām sure that he will help us on the pitch for the rest of the season.ā
ā¦I have some thoughts on this, but Iāll get into that in the next section.
What I will say is, inferring anything from JoĆ£o Pedroās tweet (below) is just a bit pointless. āOkā means nothing in isolation. If he initially thought heād be out for two months but is out for six weeks instead, thatās āokā if you ask me.
Plus, as a player, you want to be out on the pitch ASAP, but thatās not always wise. So, I wouldnāt read too much into that emotion-driven tweet.
Anyhow, moving on.
HĆ¼rzeler did not seem confident at all when speaking about Georginio Rutter and Yankuba Minteh. Frustrated, if anything. Minor hamstring issues, and I donāt think theyāll be risked (or fit).
Danny Welbeck is an option to start, however. Diego GĆ³mez may also make the squad. How very lovely.
š Predicted Lineup
š JoĆ£o Pedro
The elephant in the room. Although an overweight elephant would probably have ankles in better condition than JoĆ£o Pedroās.
Look, HĆ¼rzelerās comments were promising and lead me to believe JoĆ£o Pedroās going to be in the squad, but at the same time, I think his chance of not being in the squad far exceeds his chance of starting (with an appearance off the bench being the most likely outcome).
Those comments look really good for JoĆ£o Pedro, but thereās a lot of nothingness in there too. Plus, this is his third ankle injury of the season, and thereās only a 64-hour gap between Ipswich (A) and United (A).
If he could hypothetically start one, Iād imagine HĆ¼rzeler prefers it to be the second, but at the same time, I have doubts about his fitness, so make of that what you will.
For FPL, Iād bench him. I donāt think heās likely to start, and he could make an appearance off the bench for a 1-pointer and that one final blow to your xMins rank. Why put yourself through that?
š The Attack
Alright, Iāll cover this in one go because Iām basically going to say the phrase āshort turnaround/load managementā in ten different ways.
Welbeck is injury-prone and has recently come off the back of an injury. I donāt think starting him with such a short turnaround before a game where you need him is ideal, but other than Enciso, literally no one else is fit enough to play there. One of Welbeck/Pedro will start, and I cannot see it being both. So, Welbeckās likely to start out of necessity before being subbed off.
Georginio Rutter could conceivably start as the CF or as the 10 if fit, but we simply donāt know if he is. HĆ¼rzeler was quite pessimistic about it as well.
Mitomaās recently been benched for Adingra due to load-management reasons; however, he played 90 on the weekend and Adingra played 0. Iād be inclined to believe Mitoma starts and Adingra comes off the bench as an early sub, but it going either way wouldnāt surprise me.
Enciso seems like a tactical fit for this match, which is why I think heāll start. Mid block, plenty of room to run into as the 10, take some shots, have fun. But really, I think 2/3 of Enciso, OāRiley, and Ayari will start. Assuming the first does, the latter comes down to minutes management. I canāt see whoever starts today starting on Sunday, and usually, Iād expect OāRiley to start vs. United, but considering his shortfall of minutes recentlyā¦ yeah, itās not clear-cut.
HĆ¼rzeler praised Gruda, and he was good off the bench vs. Norwich. Plus, Adingra aside, he seems to be the only fit RW, so I imagine he starts.
š The Defence
Iād like to, once again, reiterate that my view on the lineup prediction/fitness is a little more pessimistic given what weāve seen under HĆ¼rzeler, so thereās room for your own error bars if youāre more hopeful than me.
Which brings me to Lewis Dunk. Sadly, this is as much of a 50/50 as a 50/50 can get. Iāll be a little more surprised if he started than if he didnāt (hence Webster being in my predicted lineup), but my world wouldnāt be rocked if he did start.
Just a āhuh, fair enough,ā and Iāll carry on with my day.
Okay, so HĆ¼rzelerās praised Webster a lot recently, and to be fair to him, Websterās been great:
Hurzeler said: āAdam is a leaderāwe need him on the pitch because he communicates a lot.
He is a loud speaker, not only on the training pitch, also beside that.
I think the young lads need this support and this help.
Adam worked hard during rehab and he suffered because it was a long injury, a long time when he was out.
But he was really impressive how he came back in a very tough game and very intense game.
He showed a great performance and hopefully he continue these performances.
āIām quite sure he will play against Norwich.
But heās also called Dunk a leader and said very nice things about Dunk. He was quite definitive in saying Dunk would be available to face Ipswich.
But the question still lingers: can Lewis Dunk start, play 70-ish minutes, and be ready to start vs. United considering the issues heās faced with his calf?
ā¦Iām not so sure, hence my pessimism. If he doesnāt start, I imagine he makes an appearance off the bench. So, you know, cameo risk for FPL.
Veltman vs. Lamptey could also be a toss-up, but Iād assume Lamptey is more likely to come off the bench around the 70th minute, if fit.
šļø Conclusion
Good luck to the medical team. Thatās all I have to say.
But, in all seriousness, this is a game Brighton are expected to win, and if competent enough, should do. But it wonāt be easy. You should go full tilt but canāt because half the squad is injured, and youāre off to Old Trafford very soonāitās all just very hectic. Iād still hope for a wināitās the probable outcomeābut I really just wish the medical team well.
And thatās that, really. See you on the other side of this game for the Manchester United (A) preview, and a few more articles thrown in there. Graham Potterācan he make West Ham work? Find out tomorrow :)
Until then, have a great week ahead, and take care.