The 24-year-old has been sidelined with a knee injury that required surgery since October.
However, he has given an indication that he could feature before the end of the campaign by being named in the team for today's match.
Brazilian full-back Maicon has also been given a starting role.
Restore Data
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | PTS | |
| 1 | Liverpool | 23 | 17 | 5 | 1 | 56 | 21 | 35 | 56 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 24 | 14 | 8 | 2 | 49 | 22 | 27 | 50 |
| 3 | Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest | 24 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 40 | 27 | 13 | 47 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 24 | 12 | 7 | 5 | 47 | 31 | 16 | 43 |
| 5 | Manchester CityMan City | 24 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 48 | 35 | 13 | 41 |
| 6 | Newcastle UnitedNewcastle | 24 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 42 | 29 | 13 | 41 |
| 7 | Bournemouth | 24 | 11 | 7 | 6 | 41 | 28 | 13 | 40 |
| 8 | Aston Villa | 24 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 34 | 37 | -3 | 37 |
| 9 | Fulham | 24 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 36 | 32 | 4 | 36 |
| 10 | Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton | 24 | 8 | 10 | 6 | 35 | 38 | -3 | 34 |
| 11 | Brentford | 24 | 9 | 4 | 11 | 42 | 42 | 0 | 31 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 24 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 28 | 30 | -2 | 30 |
| 13 | Manchester UnitedMan Utd | 24 | 8 | 5 | 11 | 28 | 34 | -6 | 29 |
| 14 | Tottenham HotspurSpurs | 24 | 8 | 3 | 13 | 48 | 37 | 11 | 27 |
| 15 | West Ham UnitedWest Ham | 24 | 7 | 6 | 11 | 29 | 46 | -17 | 27 |
| 16 | Everton | 23 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 23 | 28 | -5 | 26 |
| 17 | Wolverhampton WanderersWolves | 24 | 5 | 4 | 15 | 34 | 52 | -18 | 19 |
| 18 | Leicester CityLeicester | 24 | 4 | 5 | 15 | 25 | 53 | -28 | 17 |
| 19 | Ipswich TownIpswich | 24 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 22 | 49 | -27 | 16 |
| 20 | Southampton | 24 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 18 | 54 | -36 | 9 |
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