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Louis van Gaal faces an injury crisis in attack following the news that two of his first choice forwards will miss Saturday's game Manchester United forwards Wayne Rooney and Anthony Martial have both been ruled out of Saturday's clash with Watford. Martial injured his foot against England at Wembley on Tuesday meaning he will miss the trip to Vicarage Road, while Rooney is suffering from an unspecified illness. Despite that setback, United boss Louis van Gaal is hopeful both players will be fit in time for next week's Champions League group stage clash with PSV at Old Trafford. He said to MUTV: "It’s not as heavy as everybody has written in the media, but he [Rooney] cannot play against Watford. “Maybe PSV for Martial but it's not certain, and I think Rooney shall also play then because illness is not something that lasts for many days. And Valencia, of course, has been operated on before the international break already, then [Luke] Shaw, so we ha...

The Belgian, who has played only three times in the league this season, is recovering from a knee ligament injury suffered in September and has returned to group training Thibaut Courtois has trained with the Chelsea first-team squad as he steps up his rehabilitation from a knee injury. The Belgium international had surgery on ligament damage in September and has not played a game since, with manager Jose Mourinho stating he was unlikely to return until December. Courtois' recovery appears to be on track after the Premier League champions confirmed he completed a session with the squad earlier on Thursday.

The Frenchman will return for the match against Barca after spending over a month out with a hamstring problem, while Sergio Ramos will start the game despite a shoulder injury Real Madrid boss Rafael Benitez confirmed Karim Benzema is fit for Saturday’s top of the table La Liga clash against Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu. The French striker has been missing since sustaining a hamstring injury while on international duty in October, but trained with his team-mates on Thursday. Speaking on Friday, Benitez confirmed Benzema is available, although he wouldn’t confirm if he would start the match. “Benzema is in the squad,” the former Liverpool boss said at a press conference at the club’s Valdebebas training ground. “He has trained well and we will decide tomorrow if he plays or not.”

 The Blues boss has dismissed any notion that the club will dip into the transfer market in January to salvage their floundering league season Jose Mourinho insists Chelsea are capable of recovering from their terrible start to the season and finishing in the top four without the need to bolster his squad or "clean" out the dressing room in January. The Blues' title defence has been marred by a succession of dismal displays, with the reigning Premier League champions currently 16th in the standings, 15 points behind co-leaders Manchester City and Arsenal after losing seven of their opening 12 fixtures. There have also been reports of dressing room unrest at Stamford Bridge and talk that Mourinho is planning a clear-out during the January transfer window. However, the Portuguese insists that Chelsea remain united and can still secure Champions League football for next season. “Yes, I'm confident we can get into the top four," the former Inte...