By Chris Burton Last updated: 8th February 2008
Curbishley: Has players coming back
West Ham are pushing for Europe, while Birmingham are now firmly entrenched in a relegation battle.
The Hammers are just four points off Aston Villa in sixth and will still harbour ambitions of clinching a Uefa Cup spot.
They are in good form of late as well having won seven and drawn five of their last 16 Premier League games, and have suffered just one defeat in their last seven at Upton Park.
Birmingham on the other hand have slipped into the relegation zone on the back of one win in 10 and have dropped points against fellow strugglers Sunderland and Derby in recent weeks.
They have also struggled on their travels this season losing nine of their 13 games on the road and will be in for another tough test in East London.
The Hammers recorded a 1-0 win in the reverse fixture back in August and will be looking to pick up their fourth successive Premier League victory over the Blues.
Alan Cursbishley will asses the fitness of winger Julien Faubert before deciding whether to include the Frenchman. He did manage 90 minutes for the reserves on Monday but may need another run out for the second string after only recently shaking off a calf strain.
Nolberto Solano, Bobby Zamora and Craig Bellamy were also in action earlier in the week and could be included in the squad.
Scott Parker (knee) and Kieron Dyer (broken leg) are still a few weeks off full fitness, while Calum Davenport (neck), James Collins (knee) and Nigel Quashie (foot) are also sidelined.
Henri Camara has returned from Africa Cup of Nations duty with Senegal, but John Pantsil is still in Ghana after featuring in the hosts' semi-final defeat to Cameroon on Thursday.
Birmingham's Olivier Kapo will miss the game through suspension after picking up his fifth booking of the campaign against Sunderland 11 days ago.
The absence of the former Juventus winger could give hope of a recall to either Gary McSheffrey or Daniel De Ridder.
With City struggling for goals of late boss Alex McLeish must decide whether to make changes up front with Mikael Forssell and Cameron Jerome both in contention for a recall.
Midfielder Mehdi Nafti and defender Rahi Jaidi have returned from the Africa Cup of Nations but full-back Franck Queudrue is still sidelined with a hamstring injury.
| Time | Fixture |
|---|---|
| Monday 9th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 20:00 | Liverpool vs Birmingham |
| Saturday 21st November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 12:45 | Liverpool vs Man City |
| 15:00 | Birmingham vs Fulham |
| 15:00 | Burnley vs Aston Villa |
| 15:00 | Chelsea vs Wolverhampton |
| 15:00 | Hull vs West Ham |
| 15:00 | Sunderland vs Arsenal |
| 17:30 | Man Utd vs Everton |
| Sunday 22nd November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 13:30 | Bolton vs Blackburn |
| 15:00 | Tottenham vs Wigan |
| 16:00 | Stoke vs Portsmouth |
| Wednesday 25th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 19:45 | Hull vs Everton |
| 20:00 | Fulham vs Blackburn |
| Saturday 28th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| 15:00 | Blackburn vs Stoke |
| 15:00 | Fulham vs Bolton |
| 15:00 | Man City vs Hull |
| 15:00 | Portsmouth vs Man Utd |
| 15:00 | West Ham vs Burnley |
| 15:00 | Wigan vs Sunderland |
| 17:30 | Aston Villa vs Tottenham |
| Time | Result |
|---|---|
| Sunday 8th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Chelsea 1 - 0 Man Utd | |
| West Ham 1 - 2 Everton | |
| Wigan 1 - 1 Fulham | |
| Hull 2 - 1 Stoke | |
| Saturday 7th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Wolverhampton 1 - 4 Arsenal | |
| Man City 3 - 3 Burnley | |
| Tottenham 2 - 0 Sunderland | |
| Blackburn 3 - 1 Portsmouth | |
| Aston Villa 5 - 1 Bolton | |
| Wednesday 4th November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| West Ham 2 - 1 Aston Villa | |
| Sunday 1st November | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Birmingham 0 - 0 Man City | |
| Saturday 31st October | |
| Barclays Premier League | |
| Man Utd 2 - 0 Blackburn | |
| Sunderland 2 - 2 West Ham | |
| Portsmouth 4 - 0 Wigan | |
| Bolton 0 - 4 Chelsea | |
| Stoke 2 - 2 Wolverhampton | |
| Fulham 3 - 1 Liverpool | |
| Burnley 2 - 0 Hull | |
| Everton 1 - 1 Aston Villa | |
| Arsenal 3 - 0 Tottenham | |
| Pos | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chelsea | 12 | 30 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 11 | 25 |
| 3 | Manchester United | 12 | 25 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 12 | 22 |
| 5 | Aston Villa | 12 | 21 |
| 6 | Manchester City | 11 | 20 |
| 7 | Liverpool | 11 | 18 |
| 8 | Sunderland | 12 | 17 |
| 9 | Stoke City | 12 | 16 |
| 10 | Burnley | 12 | 16 |
| 11 | Fulham | 11 | 15 |
| 12 | Everton | 11 | 15 |
| 13 | Wigan Athletic | 12 | 14 |
| 14 | Blackburn Rovers | 11 | 13 |
| 15 | Birmingham City | 11 | 11 |
| 16 | Bolton Wanderers | 11 | 11 |
| 17 | Hull City | 12 | 11 |
| 18 | West Ham United | 12 | 10 |
| 19 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 12 | 10 |
| 20 | Portsmouth | 12 | 7 |
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