Injury and fitness latest & probable line-up v Arsenal

It looks like we'll be fielding pretty much a full strength side against Arsenal today.

During Friday's press conference, Pellegrini revealed that Nastasic was the only
player ruled out through injury. He has "at least one week more" to regain fitness.
Jovetic, though, has been "working normally with the squad" and it appears that
Micah is also fit. Earlier this week Pellegrini announced that Clichy "will be okay
for Saturday."

Below are the minutes played and goals scored since the international break, along
with the latest injury news. Arsenal's injury news can be found at physioroom.com.

The Guardian's Jamie Jackson seems confident that Pantilimon will retain his place,
so I'm predicting this as the starting line-up:

Pantilimon, Zabaleta, Kompany, Demichelis, Clichy, Fernandinho, Yaya Toure, Nasri,
Silva, Aguero, Negredo

With only one injured squad player, choosing who to leave off the subs' bench might be

a tricky decision for Pellegrini. I'm guessing he'll have to pick two from Rodwell, Garcia,

Milner, Kolorov and Jovetic.

Predicted bench:

Hart, Richards, Lescott, Garcia, Milner, Navas, Dzeko.

That would mean that the following players (costing £54million) couldn't get on the bench:
Jovetic (£22m), Kolorov (£19m), Rodwell (£13m), Boyata, Guidetti, Wright

Upcoming matches:

Tue 17 Dec (7:45pm) Away v Leicester (League Cup QF)

Sat  21 Dec (3.00pm) Away v Fulham

Order my new book on City's origins in time for Christmas

Called A Man's Game: The Birth of Mancunian Football and the Origins of Manchester City FC
(Books & Doxey), the 218-page paperback took me three years to research and two more to write.

I'm pleased to say I'm getting very positive feedback so far, and have had three people tell me the book
was hard to put down (though one was my sister). You can read some of the reviews lower down the page.

                  Buy direct through the publisher for £9.75 plus £2.75 P&P via the BuyNow button 
                                                            & Save £0.39 on Amazon.co.uk price
                                                                                           

                                      Copies purchased through Buy Now are signed by the author
                                           & will be dispatched by 1st class post the following day 

                       UK Customers
                     

             

Also available at Amazon.co.uk           Worldwide customers:  h                    Amazon.com        or Amazon's Createspace

                         Reviews                                                                                          

MCFC Official Programme

"An essential purchase for any fan interested in the early days of association
football in Manchester.

Old Newspaper clippings and Ordnance Survey maps from the 19th century provide
a glimpse into the past, with Keenan's considered commentary and analysis adding
fascinating insights into the formation of the club, and even the naming of Maine Road".

New light on an Old Subject 

Emeritus Professor Steve Rigby (Manchester University School of History)

Andrew Keenan manages to unearth a mass of new material about the origins of the
club and offers a number of important and original interpretations of City's genesis, in
particular challenging familiar views about the part played by St Mark's church, West
Gorton, in the club's formation.

Keenan locates the development of football in Victorian Manchester in the wider context of the city's political
and social history but his background in journalism means that the book never becomes dry or overly
academic even though it is based on original research into the primary sources.
(Steve's two-page review is in the current issue of King of the Kippax, available here.)

Brilliantly Researched & Well Worth A Read
Lee Hayes (co-owner, ManCityFans.net)

This book is not just for fans of Manchester City, anybody with an interest in the
history of the beautiful game will find it to be a brilliant and interesting read.

The amount of research that has gone into the book is staggering, and is backed
up with evidence such as newspaper cuttings and old maps. As well as introducing
new evidence on some aspects of City's history it also challenges important information such as how and
when the club actually came into existence.

If you think you know all about the history of MCFC, read this book and I guarantee you will learn
something new.


Great Read
Jon Camden (assistant headmaster and former history teacher)

I love social history and I love football and if, like me, you do you'll love this book. A Man's Game is an
extremely well researched, interesting read. Keenan successfully weaves the story of the origins of
Manchester City with the wider social history of Lancashire and Manchester to produce a fresh, fast
paced, and fascinating account of the beginnings of Association Football in the North West. Sex, religion,
politics and football: a winning combination.

 I read this relatively short book cover to cover in a few hours and found it hard to put down. And no,
you don't have to be a die-hard City fan to appreciate it, I'm a South London Palace fan, this book has
a broad appeal to anyone interested in the history of football.

An Original, Well-Researched and Engaging Read
Michael Marriott (history graduate, Exeter University)

'A Man's Game' ... skilfully weaves the club's history in to Manchester's rich
socio-religious past. The author is not afraid to slaughter sacred cows; the book
reveals shocking truths about Arthur Connell, one of the Eithad's historical heroes.

What is most notable, however, is the way in which the author substantiates his arguments
with an impressive array of original contemporary sources; newspapers, correspondence and photographs
are all used to better illustrate his points. It is through this fastidious research that Andrew Keenan succeeds
in providing a more nuanced and sophisticated history of Manchester City Football Club.

                                                                                     ~ ~ ~

                         You can contact me at akeenan(at)manchesterfootballhistory(dot)com.

                                  I'm also on Twitter @mcfchistory and on Facebook here.