Steve Clarke hopeful on Romelu Lukaku for Saturday

West Bromwich Albion manager Steve Clarke is optimistic that Romelu Lukaku will be healthy enough to feature this Saturday against Manchester City. Lukaku has been out of action during the international break while resting an ankle injury that has been bothering him for the majority of the season. Clarke had the following to say about Lukaku's injury via the West Brom official site.

"He’s had a pain in his ankle for a few weeks. He felt it again when he came off the bench against QPR and didn’t feel it was right to go. He went across and got it assessed by the Belgium doctor and got sent back. It’s not a big problem but it’s one we’re mindful we don’t want to become a big problem."

Should Lukaku be fit enough to play on Saturday, I'd be surprised if he was in the starting eleven. While Lukaku has generally been excellent this season, he's probably a bit short on fitness at this point after taking the past week and a half off. He'd seem more likely to be used as an impact sub off the bench than he would be to start the game.

Whatever Lukaku's role on Saturday, I think the majority here will certainly be pulling for WBA to pull the upset over the defending champs. A Lukaku hat-trick to seal it would be nice, but I guess I shouldn't be greedy. Get well soon Romelu, we want to see more of you in action.