Injury Update

Arsenal midfielders Aaron Ramsey and Samir Nasri both face three weeks on the sidelines after picking up injuries during training last week.

Welshman Ramsey suffered a thigh injury during Friday's session while Nasri picked up a hamstring strain.

I guess Cesc is going to have to play each and every game now. I thought maybe he'd be rested for the Bolton "rematch" but now it seems that Arsenal can't afford that.

Robinho is ten days away from Manchester City return

via Yahoo!Sports:

Manchester City manager Mark Hughes has revealed that Robinho could be ready to make a return to first-team action in ten days time.

A stress fracture of the ankle has kept the Brazilian forward out of action since City's game with Portsmouth at the end of the August, but Hughes is hopeful that he could return against Scunthorpe United in the League Cup.

"'Robi' is not far away, he's probably got about ten more days and then he can be back in the group," Hughes told City's official website.

"He's working every day, we're trying to get him back as soon as we can but with a bone injury there is a certain length of time to give the injury."

Hughes also had good news regarding Michael Johnson and Roque Santa Cruz, who have both made returns from long-term injuries in recent weeks.

He added: "They are both back in the fold, but they still need games and we are looking to get some more match-play into them, if we can, in between being involved at first-team level.

Santa Cruz seals City move

Roque Santa Cruz has completed his £17million move to Manchester City.

The Paraguayan passed a medical with the Eastlands outfit on Monday afternoon and has now signed a deal to link up once more with Mark Hughes, his former manager at Blackburn.

Hughes has never made any secret of his desire to have Santa Cruz at City and having assured themselves the knee injury that kept the South American out at the end of last season has fully cleared up, the Blues have completed the signing of the striker.

Santa Cruz becomes Hughes' second major signing of the summer, following the arrival of Gareth Barry from Aston Villa last month.

So again the inevitable finally happens and like the CRon saga, RSC had been a target for over a year.  Now Hughes' Citeh side starts to take shape.  Certainly you can see the following team in a 4-5-1 formation:

Given, Zabaleta, two from Kompany/Dunne/Richards/new center back, Bridge, Barry, de Jong, Ireland, SWP, Robinho, RSC

Actually, not a bad lineup.  Hughes' task is going to be to get this group to play together week in and week out.  That and probably moving players on who don't fit Hughes' plan or who won't accept a bench role - Bellamy, Petrov and Hart particularly.

For fantasy purposes, hopefully RSC's shameful quitting on Rovers will have ruined his value and he can be had next season on the cheap.