GW4 Injury Updates: Gomes Suspended, Konsa Cements Arsenal Spot
Friday’s press conferences produced one dramatic suspension, one longer-than-expected fitness scare, and a handful of doubts that could swing Saturday’s team sheets. Here’s what actually changes your Gameweek 4 squad.
An injury update only matters if it changes a transfer or a captaincy call. Everything else is noise.
Suspended: Joao Gomes (Aston Villa), Two Gameweeks
Gomes picked up a violent conduct red card on his Aston Villa debut and will now miss the visit of Nottingham Forest this weekend as well as next. It’s an early setback for Villa’s midfield rebuild and forces a reshuffle for a side already short on attacking returns this season, with Forest’s typically stingy defence not the easiest fixture to solve that problem against.
Confirmed Out: Josh Dasilva (Brentford), Until the Break
Dasilva tweaked a hamstring playing for Brentford’s Under-21s and won’t be seen again until after the international break, a longer layoff than the initial knock suggested. It’s a squad-depth issue rather than a first-team headline loss, but worth knowing if he was on any watchlists.
CONFIRMED OUT THIS WEEK
Arsenal: William Saliba (back)
Manchester City: Jeremy Doku (calf)
Leeds: Joe Rodon (hamstring), still 8-10 weeks as confirmed last week
Sunderland: Habib Diarra (hamstring), still 6-8 weeks as confirmed last week
Manchester United: Amad Diallo (unspecified)
Brentford: Josh Dasilva (hamstring)
Doubts Worth Watching
Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo finished the Ipswich win with adductor discomfort on both sides and was left out of the midweek Champions League squad as a precaution. Andoni Iraola has described it as “not a proper injury” and says there’s a chance he’s available against Fulham, but it’s a real doubt worth checking again close to deadline. Arsenal’s Cristhian Mosquera, who missed the Chelsea win entirely with a muscular issue, is also a doubt for the trip to Sunderland. Manchester City’s Nico O’Reilly picked up a knock in the warm-up before the Coventry match and his status for the Manchester derby hasn’t been fully clarified. None of these are confirmed absences, so don’t make a transfer purely off the doubt.
Good News: Returns and Near-Returns
Ezri Konsa’s emergency start at centre-back against Chelsea, with both Saliba and Mosquera unavailable, went well enough that Mikel Arteta looks set to keep faith with him even once Mosquera is fit again. At Tottenham, Savio is available again and James Maddison is back in training, both positive signs ahead of the visit of Everton. Liverpool’s crowded forward line got a boost too: Bradley Barcola made his full debut in Gakpo’s usual left-sided role, and Victor Munoz continues to impress on the right, which is good squad depth even if it muddies the picture for anyone who owns the incumbents. Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton, Edward Nketiah and Ismaila Sarr all picked up knocks that aren’t considered serious, with a Gameweek 6 return targeted and an outside chance either Wharton or Nketiah beats that timeline by a week.
What To Actually Do
Ezri Konsa: strong buy at his price, nailed at centre-back while Arsenal’s defence keeps a clean-sheet floor intact
Cody Gakpo: don’t lock him into a captaincy or vice-captaincy plan yet, check Saturday’s team news first
Crystal Palace attackers: still thin up front, hold off transfers in until Wharton and Nketiah are closer to returning
Aston Villa midfield: expect a reshuffle without Gomes, worth a glance at the predicted lineup before deadline
Team news keeps moving right up to Saturday’s 13:30 BST deadline. Check back before locking in any transfer built around a fitness call above.
