Torres ankle injury

Fernando Torres suffered ankle injury in Liverpool's defeat at Stoke | Football | guardian.co.uk

Liverpool have confirmed that their striker Fernando Torres has suffered an ankle ligament strain but will still report for international duty with Spain this week.

The Spain forward required treatment during the second half of yesterday's 2-0 Premier League defeat at Stoke but still completed the 90 minutes.

Torres will now be assessed by Spain's medical staff ahead of Wednesday's friendly against Portugal in Lisbon.

Expect lots of "should be fit to play" and "may be ready" and "doing everything they can to have star striker ready" etc. Just don't expect any definitive news on whether or not you should hold this otherwise no-brainer pick or gut him to buy Ngog.

Vennegoor given all clear

Well, maybe not all clear.

Hull City have welcomed news revealing that Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink has suffered no long-term damage.

The Dutch striker was knocked unconscious after colliding with Richard Dunne during Wednesday's 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa, with the game delayed by seven minutes as he was treated on the field before being carried off.

Vennegoor of Hesselink was immediately rushed to Hull Royal Infirmary for scans, with it feared that he may have suffered major head trauma.

However, medical tests have come back all clear and he has subsequently been released to recuperate at home.

The 31-year-old frontman will definitely sit out the Tigers' home date with Sunderland on Saturday, but could figure again before the end of the season.

I've had N'Gog penciled in as a cheap striker this week. But he's suffered a 24 trip to Madrid to play today and travels to Burnley at the weekend. Perhaps Jozy is a better option? He's cheaper. Hull must win, and they're at home to a poor-traveling Sunderland side. I don't know that I'm ready to ship out DBent from another of the striker positions, but maybe there are goals from both sides in this one.

Or is that just our USA bias talking?

Knee surgery rules Torres out for rest of season

Fernando Torres will miss the remainder of the season for Liverpool due to knee surgery, and his participation in the World Cup finals must be in some doubt as his club expect him to be sidelined for six weeks.

Torres, who previously underwent knee surgery in January, missed Liverpool's 0-0 draw with Fulham last weekend due to the problem and the striker will go under the knife on Sunday night after being seen by a specialist.

David N'gog
6.20
@Burnley

Get in while the barn door is open.

Meanwhile,

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti will allow Didier Drogba to decide whether he is fit enough to play on this season.

The Ivorian striker is currently nursing a groin injury, and may yet require surgery in order to cure the ailment.

He was in obvious discomfort throughout the Blues' 2-1 defeat at local rivals Tottenham on Sunday, but was unable to be replaced in the second half as Ancelotti had used all of his substitutes.

Drogba is now in danger of inflaming the problem and ruling himself out of action for a prolonged period of time.