Gakpo, Barcola & O’Reilly: Latest FPL injury news for Gameweek 4 as Man Utd face Man City

Fantasy Premier League players get the benefit of a Saturday deadline for the first time this season for Gameweek 4, but the extra thinking time may well be necessary given that quite a few key players are injury doubts heading into the weekend.

Cody Gakpo, Bradley Barcola and Nico O’Reilly are among the important FPL assets who are out or doubts for the latest set of top-flight fixtures, and we’ve got updates on the conditions of those three and many more Fantasy-relevant players below to help you stay up-to-date as the deadline looms.

We’ll be updating this article as we get more information from the managers’ pre-match press conferences, but here’s everything we know right now – and if you want some more help ahead of the weekend, our resident FPL expert has also weighed in on this week’s captaincy choice in this article right here.

Will Luke Shaw play vs Man City?

Cody Gakpo & Bradley Barcola: The good news for Liverpool fans is that Gakpo shouldn’t be out for long, with Andoni Iraola telling the press this week that the Dutch winger’s adductor issue wasn’t a “proper injury” – but he only returned to training on Friday and could miss a second straight game against Fulham.

New boy Barcola, meanwhile, limped off early against Atlético Madrid in midweek, but it turned out to be nothing more than a touch of cramp. The £123m man should be available to start if required.

Nico O’Reilly: Enzo Maresca said earlier this week that O’Reilly would “probably” be available for the Manchester Derby after recovering from a lower back problem, and confirmed on Friday that he was “100% ready”. Given the many new additions in midfield, however, don’t be surprised if O’Reilly winds up on the bench anyway.

Luke Shaw: On the other side of the Mancunian divide, there’s some doubt over the availability of Shaw after the experienced left-back missed the routine Champions League win over Sabah. Michael Carrick suggested that it was just a combination of cramp and the need to rotate his players that caused Shaw to be excluded, and we expect him to start at Old Trafford, but Carrick was non-committal in his presser. Carlos Baleba and Amad Diallo remain out.

Cristhian Mosquera & Jurriën Timber: Mikel Arteta suggested during Friday’s pre-match press conference that both of his stricken defenders could return to face Sunderland this weekend, although there are few indications that either are likely to start. Useful information for future transfer decisions, perhaps, but it’s probably not worth pouncing this weekend.

Chelsea & Aston Villa players among other FPL injury worries

Moisés Caicedo: While not too many players own Caicedo following last season’s disappointing return, those who took a chance on him as a potential defcon midfielder should know that he’s touch-and-go on his return from a minor calf injury. Marco Palestra and Levi Colwill are also facing late fitness tests.

Matty Cash: The right-back missed out during midweek due to an unspecified muscular injury and is a minor doubt for the forthcoming game against Nottingham Forest as a result. We’re waiting on the press conference for this one, and there’s currently no real clarity as to Cash’s availability.

Jack Hinshelwood & Giorginio Rutter: Gameweek 1 hero Hinshelwood has a “chance” to return to the matchday squad ahead of schedule, according to Fabian Hürzeler, but he didn’t sound entirely optimistic when he said it. Rutter sounds like he’s closer to a return.

Nathan Collins: Keith Andrews has confirmed that Collins won’t return until after the international break following a calf strain, so that’s him done for the next two gameweeks.

James Maddison: We’re awaiting confirmation that Maddison will return to the matchday squad after suffering a broken shoulder on the opening day of the season – it’s unlikely that’ll start even if he does make it back in time for the game against Everton, however.