Injury briefing: Roy Hodgson must patch up Crystal Palace defence

Gaffer tracker

John Yems - Crawley

Sky Bet League Two strugglers Crawley have won just one of their last 11 matches, prompting the board to dismiss Gabriele Cioffi and appoint John Yems on a short-term deal until the end of the season.

The Red Devils have played some good football but poor defending has frequently let them down and their goals-conceded total of 31 is the joint-third highest in the division.

Yems will look to address their defensive shortcomings and has the advantage of having previously worked with the club.

The 60-year-old had a short spell as Crawley head coach in the 2007-08 season, helping them avoid relegation from the National League, and has recently been scouting for Bournemouth.

Veteran midfielder Dannie Bulman joins Yems's coaching team.

Injury Briefing

Patched-up Crystal Palace to face Watford

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson is one of the best defensive coaches in the Premier League and he is having to showcase his qualities to the full.

The Eagles went into Tuesday's clash at home to Bournemouth without centre-backs Scott Dann (ankle) and Gary Cahill (knee) and right-back Joel Ward (knee). They finished it without centre-back Mamadou Sakho (red card) and left-back Patrick van Aanholt (hamstring).

Hodgson shuffled his team around, deploying utility man Jeffrey Schlupp at left-back and midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate at centre-back, and it worked a treat with Palace digging out a hard-fought 1-0 victory despite playing with ten men for more than 70 minutes.

Hodgson has not ruled out returns for Dann and Cahill, but Palace's problems may offer some encouragement to basement boys Watford, who they face at Vicarage Road on Saturday.

Kalvin Phillips ban a headache for Leeds

Marcelo Bielsa's Leeds are operating like a well-oiled machine but one of the integral cogs is holding midfielder Kalvin Phillips, who misses Saturday's Yorkshire derby at Huddersfield due to a one-match ban.

Phillips was the subject of Premier League interest in the summer and is probably the best player of his type outside the top flight.

Losing him is a major blow and presents a selection dilemma for Bielsa, who likes to keep changes to a minimum.

Midfield alternatives are thin on the ground with 20-year old academy graduate Jamie Shackleton ruled out with a muscle strain and Adam Forshaw still working his way back from a hip injury.

Bielsa has decided to be creative by turning to on loan Brighton defender Ben White.

The 22-year-old has played 19 games at centre-back this season but he is comfortable on the ball and Bielsa fancies him to do a temporary job in midfield.

Preston hard-pressed at the back

Promotion-chasing Preston have lost their last three Sky Bet Championship matches and their chances of winning at QPR may be ruined by a defensive injury crisis.

Patrick Bauer (thigh) is the latest casualty, joining Andrew Hughes, Ben Davies, Darnell Fisher, Tom Clarke (knee) on the sidelines.

All five defenders were unavailable for Monday's 1-0 loss at home to West Brom, although Preston manager Alex Neill is hoping the situation may improve.

The lack of available defenders led to 18-year-old defender Jack Armer being recalled from a loan spell at Northern Premier side Lancaster City. He was an unused substitute against West Brom.

Sunderland looking stronger

Under-fire Sunderland manager Phil Parkinson was handed a boost this week with strikers Charlie Wyke and Marc McNulty returning to full training.

Wyke (ankle) has not played since October, while McNulty (hamstring) has missed the last three weeks but both are expected to be in contention to face Gillingham at the Priestfield Stadium.

Parkinson said: "We'll monitor them but unless there are any issues, they should be involved in some way at Gillingham.

"We have been stretched as far as strikers are concerned, so having them back will give us more options.”

Sunderland paid a reported £4 million to sign Northern Ireland striker Will Grigg in January but the 28-year-old's fire has been extinguished this term and he has scored only one goal in 17 matches.

Port Vale dealt double blow

Sky Bet League Two promotion-chasers Port Vale have won five of their last seven games but manager John Askey will have to make a couple of changes for their clash at home to Walsall because winger David Worrall and midfielder Luke Joyce are suspended.

Worrall will be missed, having scored three goals in his last six appearances, but the bigger blow could be the absence of all-action midfielder Joyce, who has taken his game up a notch this season.

Joyce's consistent performances have lessened the impact of the absence of his injury-hit teammate Manny Oyeleke, who has featured in only three league games.

The Valiants are likely to be weaker without them and that could be good news for struggling Walsall.

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