"We lost James Tomkins in the game against Newcastle (United), he has been operated on, so he will miss the remainder of the season which is a major blow, coming on top of Mamadou Sakho's injury five or six games ago.
"Those two have been such important pillars in the centre of our defence and helped us get where we are. It is a big ask for Scott Dann and Martin Kelly, they're going to have to step into some quite big shoes but I am confident that they can do that, and they will get their first chance on Sunday."
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