BRIEFS

Wenger fears bad Coquelin news
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger fears Francis Coquelin could face a spell on the sidelines due to a hamstring injury. The midfielder picked up the problem in his side’s 3-3 draw with Bournemouth on Tuesday and was forced off after just 28 minutes, making way for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Coquelin will undergo a scan in the coming days to determine the extent of the injury, but Wenger expects bad news after seeing the player’s reaction on the pitch.

Lookman undergoes Everton medical
Charlton winger Ademola Lookman underwent a medical on Wednesday ahead of his proposed move to Everton. Sources revealed that the fee for the 19-year-old is in the region of £10m and it is anticipated the deal will go through in the next 24 hours. It is expected that this move will be the start of a busy transfer window for Everton who are understood to also be looking for a central midfielder and centre half. Manager Ronald Koeman recently confirmed he was interested in signing Lookman during the January transfer window, saying: “Yes. There is interest in the boy.”

Bournemouth appeal Francis red card
Bournemouth have appealed against the red card shown to Simon Francis in Tuesday’s 3-3 Premier League draw with Arsenal. The defender was sent off in the 82nd minute for a foul on Aaron Ramsey with the score at 3-2 to the hosts, and Arsenal went on to capitalise on their man advantage, completing a comeback from 3-0 down to draw courtesy of Olivier Giroud’s 92nd-minute equaliser. Francis will miss Bournemouth’s FA Cup tie with Millwall and the Premier League meetings with Hull City and Watford if his appeal is unsuccessful.

Palace sweating on Benteke injury
Crystal Palace striker Christian Benteke is to have a scan on the shoulder he injured against Swansea on Tuesday night. Benteke appeared to suffer the injury when he collided with Swansea ‘keeper Lukasz Fabianski during the first half of his side’s 2-1 defeat at Selhurst Park. The Belgium international failed to re-appear at the start of the second period and was replaced by Fraizer Campbell. Palace expect to know more about Benteke’s injury today once they have examined results of the scan.