Everton manager Roberto Martinez has stated that he will await the results of Tom Cleverley’s next two training sessions before making a decision as to whether or not the former Manchester United midfielder will feature against Arsenal.
The Englishman featured for the U-21’s against Schalke on Tuesday, making his comeback from an ankle problem. The 26-year-old managed to feature for 60 minutes, with no complaints about the injury being brought up.
The midfielder, who has spent time on loan at Aston Villa, picked up the heavy injury back in August against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane.
Speaking to Everton’s official site, Martinez said:
We will see how he [Cleverley] reacts from the game on Tuesday and the next two sessions are very important to measure that,” Martinez said at his pre-match press conference on Thursday. From a medical point of view I would say he will be 100 per cent ready, it’s just trying to work on his match fitness more than anything.
Alongside Cleverley, both Steven Pienaar and Bryan Oviedo featured against Schalke for the U-21’s.The Spanish manager is delighted to see that the duo are returning to full fitness, alongside playing well. The manager also gave an update on Leighton Baines, Tony Hibbert, Aiden McGeady and Mo Besic.
It was a very significant boost to see Steven Pienaar complete 45 minutes which was the plan, and Bryan Oviedo played 90 minutes.It’s great to see them looking so sharp and adding to the squad.As I have mentioned many times, Steven Pienaar has a different profile. The way he appreciates space, the way he gets on the ball and the way he links up with Leighton, it’s a strong part of our attacking play.In a way, we had to grow as a squad to find solutions because we rely immensely on that sort of link-up. It’s been pleasing to see how we have adapted but it will be fantastic to have Steven fully fit and to stay fit for the rest of the season. Seeing Leighton progressing very well, with Mo Besic, Tony Hibbert and Aiden McGeady, we are getting close to having a full squad.
