The week after an international break should always be approached with caution when it comes to Fantasy Premier League. There are always a few players who pick up an injury that can change our transfer plans.
We also need to keep an eye on how many games and minutes our players have played, as this might make them a doubt to start for their club in the upcoming gameweek.
Here are the most popular FPL players who are doubts going into Gameweek 8 and some potential replacements for them.
Bukayo Saka
The Arsenal and England midfielder (£10.1m) is the most popular player but is a doubt for Gameweek 8. He picked up a hamstring injury during England’s 2-1 defeat by Greece in the Nations League last week and missed Sunday’s 3-1 win in Finland.
Before that victory, England interim manager Lee Carsley said: “Bukayo would have been close but it would have been unfair to take a risk with him. He’s a positive person and I expect him to be fine.”
While Carsley’s words are reassuring for Saka owners and the player is hopeful of being fit to face Bournemouth on Saturday, there are no guarantees.
I think we can rule out any medium or long-term injury for Saka but with how Arsenal’s fixtures are over the next four gameweeks, even if he misses the Bournemouth match or if you think he gets limited minutes, there is an argument to sell him now.
Arsenal’s next four fixtures read: Bournemouth (A), Liverpool (H), Newcastle United (A) and Chelsea (A), which isn’t the easiest run.
For aggressive managers, a straight swap to Phil Foden (£9.2m) doesn’t look like a bad move. Manchester City play Wolves (A), Southampton (H), Bournemouth (A), Brighton (A) and Tottenham Hotspur (H) — all good fixtures for attacking purposes.
Foden only played around 83 minutes over England’s two games and started and played 78 minutes in City’s previous league match against Fulham in Gameweek 7. He looks to be there fitness-wise and he’s actually a really good differential at only 5.6 per cent ownership at the time of writing.
Foden is, perhaps surprisingly, a differential option as a potential Saka replacement (Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Plus, Kevin De Bruyne (£9.4m) still looks to be injured. The Belgian has missed the last three league games and didn’t play for his country either during the international break, so his absence will only increase Foden’s expected minutes.
A move to Cole Palmer (£10.8m) might tempt a few but it’s tricky this week as Enzo Maresca’s side play Liverpool (A) — but the Chelsea star is a long-term hold. This is still a viable move though if you are set on going without Saka for a while.
If you have a few free transfers saved up, then you could even look at downgrading him to a cheaper midfielder and upgrading another position in your squad.
If you are looking at transferring Saka out this week, then I would look to plan a route to potentially get him back around Gameweek 12 when Arsenal’s fixtures pick up again.
Kai Havertz
Saka’s Arsenal team-mate Kai Havertz (£8.3m) is also an injury doubt.
The 25-year-old pulled out of international duty with Germany due to an apparent knee injury. He has had two weeks to recover and there will hopefully be an update on him and his team-mates in Mikel Arteta’s next press conference. However, the Spaniard is usually quite coy with his team news, so I would likely prepare for some fairly vague updates.
Similarly to Saka, Havertz can be sold if the injury looks to be more serious than first thought. Dominic Solanke (£7.6m) looks a tailor-made replacement.
The Spurs forward is a great long-term buy and has better fixtures than Havertz over the next six gameweeks. Ange Postecoglou’s side play West Ham (H), Crystal Palace (A), Aston Villa (H), Ipswich (H), Manchester City (A) and Fulham (H).
As Tottenham’s No 9, he will get plenty of chances to score and, barring the City game, they are all fixtures you would expect Spurs to score a few in.
Solanke has been getting plenty of minutes, playing the full game in four of his five league starts, and 87 minutes in the other. He has also racked up two goals and an assist, with an impressive xG (expected goals) of 3.5.
Arsenal’s Kai Havertz missed Germany’s recent games with a knee problem (Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Son Heung-min
The South Korean (£9.8m) was another one who did not attend international duties. Son has missed the last two gameweeks with a hamstring injury but, judging by the words of Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou, he should be back soon.
Ahead of the Brighton game in Gameweek 7, when he was quizzed about his star player, Postecoglou said: “Sonny (is) unlikely. He is pushing hard but I don’t think the turnaround will be quick enough for him to be ready at this stage.”
With a two-week break, I think it’s likely that Son will be available for his team’s London derby with West Ham in Gameweek 8. Postecoglou is usually quite forthcoming in his press conferences, so hopefully we get a clearer update near the end of the week.
If he is declared fit and we get negative news on Saka, then he’s another worthy replacement as Spurs have great long-term fixtures.
Be wary of long-haul travellers
Aside from injuries, there are also the added worries of those players who play on the other side of the globe. They typically play their final match in the early hours of Wednesday (UK time), which means coming back later than most of the European players, and also the time difference can have an effect too.
Manchester City and Liverpool both play on the Sunday, which will be music to the ears for a lot of FPL managers as their players get an extra day’s rest.
Luis Diaz (£8.0m) owners can be fairly confident of a start as he started in Gameweek 4 after the last international break, when Liverpool played on Saturday. Arne Slot did say he was going to rest Diaz in that game for Cody Gakpo (£7.1m) but because the latter had played twice for the Netherlands, he went with the Colombia international.
Diogo Jota (£7.4m) also started in Gameweek 4 but it’s worth noting that both he and Diaz were subbed off around the hour-mark of Liverpool’s 1-0 defeat by Nottingham Forest.
Arsenal’s Gabriel (£6.2m) and Forest’s Chris Wood (£6.2m) are the only two others of note flying back from a significantly different time zone.
New Zealander Wood had a late return from international duty in America last month. He played in the early hours of Wednesday morning but started and played 79 minutes against Liverpool.
With Forest playing on the Monday in Gameweek 8, I think he should be fine to start against Crystal Palace as he last played and scored in the 4-0 win over Malaysia on October 14.
Chris Wood has been away on New Zealand duty (Hannah Peters/Getty Images)
Gabriel played 180 minutes for Brazil in the last international break and still played the full 90 for Arsenal in Gameweek 4 against Spurs, where he also scored and kept a clean sheet.
This time around, he also played 180 minutes over two games again, and Brazil’s final match against Peru started at 1.45am (UK time) in the early hours of Wednesday. He plays on Saturday in Gameweek 8, away at Bournemouth.
Generally, it’s best to keep an eye on your players’ minutes and injury status, and make sure that you have a strong bench.
And sometimes players pick up knocks on international duty and we don’t hear about it. A case in point was Joao Pedro (£5.5m) after the last international break, who missed the Ipswich game in Gameweek 4. He was the most transferred-in player that week.
GO DEEPER
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(Top photo: MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
