The ninth match day of Premier League returns following midweek action from the League Cup, and so does Fantasy Premier League (FPL) GW9.

Arsenal travel to Liverpool on Sunday, making for the week's premier fixture. As many as eight matches are set to transpire on Saturday, with plenty of FPL stars in action.

With two weeks to go for the next international break and Joao Pedro's injury headlining the forthcoming set of fixtures, we break down the ripple effect, and everything else ahead of GW9 .

Injury Updates and Team News

Riccardo Calafiori sustained a hip issue in the win against Everton, but Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta mentioned that all the players had trained and will continue to on Saturday. That includes Declan Rice and the potentially returning Christos Tzolis.

William Osula bruised his ankle in the demoralising exit from the Cup; Yoane Wissa could return to the starting line-up.

Liverpool coach Andoni Iraola exclaimed that Dominik Szoboszlai might have a chance to feature versus Arsenal. The Reds beat Chelsea on penalties after the match finished 1-1 in normal time. For Xabi Alonso's side, the shootout defeat wasn't the only concerning result - Maxence Lacroix pulled his hamstring and will be out until after the international break.

Neco Williams suffered a knock at the weekend but is available to start for Nottingham Forest as they aim to stitch together wins.

The ownership has dropped, and the price might not warrant a place in your FPL team right now, but Bruno Fernandes is primed to return to first-team contention positive talks with Michael Carrick.

As far as Brighton and Hove Albion are concerned, Yankuba Minteh came off the bench in midweek, while Ferdi Kadioglu could slot straight back into the XI despite an early sub owing to a hip strain.

Player to buy and sell

Buy: Nicolas Jackson

With the highly-owned Joao Pedro out for the next few weeks, Nicolas Jackson is a popular transfer in given Aston Villa are beginning to turn the tide.

Their opponents, Fulham, crashed out of the League Cup on Wednesday at Craven Cottage to Crystal Palace 1-0. They haven't scored more than one goal in a match since mid-September.

Jackson remains Unai Emery's lynchpin in attack and ahead of Villa's turning fixture run, he could be a smart choice to bolster your forward ranks.

Sell: Lewis Hall

Although Newcastle return to St. James' Park and Lewis Hall continues to be one of their better performers, the increasing pool of more appealing center-backs in defence who contribute with defensive contributions (DEFCON) makes Hall a unjustifiable hold.

Antonio Silva from AFC Bournemouth, has crossed the DEFCON mark on six out of eight occasions. The Cherries have kept five consecutive clean sheets. Jean Paul van Hecke, Luka Vuskovic, the ever-reliant Gabriel, and Victor Lindelof could be better long-term, sustainable picks - all of who play for statistically better defences at present.

Differential pick of the week: Rayan

Speaking of Bournemouth, Marcus Tavernier and Evanilson are the most widely-owned FPL assets.

However, Rayan broke his duck last week and is owned by under two percent of managers. No teammate of his has as many shots as him (26). Nine big chances have fallen to the Brazilian as well.

Captaincy

Last week proved that Erling Haaland is never a deniable captaincy pick.

Cole Palmer received his first career red card, while Pedro's absence activated many vice-captains. The former takes on an under-fire Manchester United side this week, and could be an option once again after a forced rest due to suspension.

Elsewhere, Igor Thiago is a viable choice as he takes on Nottingham Forest at home.