“Available”
A fitness or eligibility statement. It leaves selection, role and minutes open.
What to check
Look for a separate comment about starting or the workload a player can handle.
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THE FORMBOOK METHOD
Listen for the qualification.
A useful reading starts with the whole answer, including the parts that leave a decision open.
The phrases below are illustrative language patterns, not quotations attributed to a particular manager. Context can change their meaning.
“Trained with us”
Evidence of progress. A single session does not establish readiness for a full match.
What to check
Check when they returned, whether training was full, and whether another assessment is pending.
“We’ll see”
An unresolved decision. The words alone cannot tell us which outcome is more likely.
What to check
Identify the next checkpoint and keep a playing substitute available.
“We need to manage him”
A workload concern. It can mean a later substitution, a bench role or a missed match.
What to check
Keep the possible outcomes separate; do not invent a precise minutes cap.
“Rested”
The reason for one absence. It does not automatically guarantee a start in the following match.
What to check
Check whether the full answer also mentions discomfort, rotation or competition.
“Not ready for this game”
A fixture-specific absence. A hoped-for return later is a different, less certain claim.
What to check
Plan without the player for that fixture; reassess before buying for the next one.
How a briefing earns its place.
We check a dated club source or a clearly attributed report, preserve a short exact quote and include the relevant question or surrounding context. Our interpretation, practical decision and remaining unknowns are labelled separately. Possible beneficiaries are conditional unless selection is explicitly confirmed.
Coverage is a source-checked editorial edition. It is not an automatic live transcript service. Missing coverage is not a clean bill of health. Briefings leave the current feed at the gameweek deadline; new evidence needs a new review.
We do not yet have a graded history of each manager’s statements. A reliability percentage would imply evidence we have not collected. The numerical Formbook Score remains a separate forecast.
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