Patrick Vieira will be forced to make changes to his Crystal Palace side this Saturday when they face Chelsea in the Premier League at Selhurst Park.
The Eagles will be without Conor Gallagher in midfield due to his loan status from the Blues, while there is also uncertainty over the potential fitness of Will Hughes after he came off with a knock against Brentford at the weekend.
Both have been important members of Palace's midfield this season, with Gallagher being the club's top scorer with seven goals while Hughes has started each of the last nine Premier League games for Vieira before coming off injured in the latest.
Hughes has since been spotted on an exercise bike during a behind the scenes video posted on the club’s Twitter page, though it remains to be seen if he’ll be available for the weekend.
Vieira will be boosted by the return of Cheikhou Kouyate however, who is now back and available for selection following his return from the Africa Cup of Nations.
The 32-year-old helped Senegal to win their first-ever AFCON title by beating Egypt on penalties in the final and was given a hero’s welcome when he returned to Palace training this week.
Palace have sorely missed Kouyate in his absence as they also have for McArthur, whose cameo off the bench at the Brentford Community Stadium was his first appearance since picking up a hamstring injury in November.
With both now back available it’ll give Vieira a chance to add some much-needed experience back into his starting XI which has been missing of late.
Palace are without a Premier League win in 2022 and will face a tough test against recently-crowned Club World Cup champions Chelsea. Their last two matches at Selhurst Park in the league have both ended in defeat to West Ham and Liverpool, while they were comprehensively beaten 3-0 by the Blues at Stamford Bridge on the opening day of the season.
Thomas Tuchel’s side will, like Palace, also be without a key midfielder for Saturday’s game as Mason Mount looks to set to sit out due to injury.
They will also be without long-term absentee Ben Chilwell but could see both Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Reece James return to action. Former Palace loanee Loftus-Cheek is back in training after not travelling to the Club World Cup due to injury while James has been out since late December with a hamstring problem.
