International Scout Notes – Thursday

Eden Hazard’s recovery from injury moves up a gear with a scoring return for Belgium, while Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino gets the night off but his (current) club-mate Philippe Coutinho features and is among the goals in Brazil.

Here are the notes from the international break’s first night of action.

Hazard steps up recovery

Depending on which newspaper you read, Belgium boss Roberto Martinez’s decision to pick Eden Hazard against Gibraltar was either a blessing or a disaster for Chelsea.

The midfield star is nearing full fitness following an ankle injury and, having come through a run-out for Chelsea’s U23 side, an international start was the logical next step for some, a step too soon for others.

In the end, it was a positive step for the player himself, who captained the side and contributed a goal and an assist in a 77-minute appearance.

Romelu Lukaku scored a hat-trick, including a penalty, while Kevin De Bruyne provided an assist in a 9-0 romp that means Belgium can confirm their World Cup qualification with a win in Greece on Sunday evening.

How involved Hazard is in that rather more testing match remains to be seen, but Chelsea manager Antonio Conte spoke this week of the need to ease his player back into domestic duties. Meanwhile Hazard himself stated post-match that he felt ready to play his part against the Greeks

“I’m happy that I’m back on the pitch. I feel good. I think I’m ready for Greece, but the coach will decide”

Chelsea travel to Leicester City in Gameweek 4 before facing tough home matches with Arsenal and Man City prior to the second international break at the end of September.

That schedule – and the likelihood he will be eased back into Premier League action – will probably dampen short-term interest in Hazard (10.5), who is still owned by 1.4% of Fantasy Premier League managers despite his summer-long injury lay-off.

A rather more welcoming set of fixtures starts in Gameweek 8 with a trip to Crystal Palace, which would seem to be the more logical time to be considering Hazard for our Fantasy teams.

The Belgian side was packed with Premier League talent. Joining Hazard, Lukaku and De Bruyne were Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, Man City centre-back Vincent Kompany and Spurs defenders Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld, with team-mate Mousa Dembele introduced at half-time.

Firmino gets a rest, Coutinho gets a game

Only two FPL forwards currently enjoy higher ownership than Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino, with 28.7% buying into the budget charms of West Ham’s Javier Hernandez and a massive 58.2% backing Man United’s Lukaku.

The 27.5% who own Firmino will have been happy to see their man remain on the bench as Brazil eased to a 2-0 win over Ecuador in which team-mate Philippe Coutinho scored the second goal.

The midfielder has been sidelined at Anfield, supposedly with a back injury, but was fit enough to enter the fray in the second half and then get on the scoresheet from a Gabriel Jesus assist.

While Coutinho has played no part in Liverpool’s season as his potential move to Barcelona rumbles on all the way through to tonight’s closure of the Spanish transfer window, Firmino has been an ever-present.

And after five straight starts for the Reds, from which he’s produced three goals and as many assists, his FPL ownership base might have feared a touch of early-season burn-out should he have figured prominently against both Ecuador and on Tuesday away at Colombia.

But with Brazil’s World Cup qualification already assured, national coach Tite has the luxury of being able to tinker with his team and rest key members of his squad while he’s about it.

Liverpool return to domestic action with a Gameweek 4 trip to Man City. They will also travel to Leicester and Newcastle and entertain Burnley before October’s international break.

Firmino looks likely to be relatively fresh for that run, although rotation looks inevitable when you also factor in Liverpool’s two Champions League fixtures in September.

The Reds host Sevilla between Gameweeks 4 and 5, while Gameweeks 6 and 7 sandwich a trip to Spartak Moscow.

Chelsea winger Willian did feature against Ecuador, setting up the first goal and playing 84 minutes, while Man City pair Fernandinho and Ederson were unused subs.

Elsewhere…

Alexis Sanchez’s day was worsened by Chile’s humbling 3-0 home defeat to Paraguay. The still-Arsenal man played the full 90 minutes and will now aim to recover ahead of a clash in Bolivia on Tuesday, before a return for the Gunners’ Gameweek 4 meeting with Bournemouth.

Huddersfield’s Australian international Aaron Mooy – owned by 11.6% – missed the 2-0 defeat in Japan through illness, but will hope to feature in the Socceroos’ vital World Cup qualifier on Tuesday against Thailand.

Arsenal defender Sead Kolasinac set up Bosnia and Herzegovina’s second goal in Cyprus but ended up on the losing side in a 3-2 thriller, while his club-mate Olivier Giroud provided an assist for France as Les Bleus strolled past Holland 4-0. Fellow Gunner Alexandre Lacazette was given a 10-minute run-out from the bench.

For Holland, Southampton’s Wesley Hoedt and Crystal Palace’s Timothy Fosu-Mensah earned 90 minutes, with the latter making an impressive international debut.

Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva earned an assist in a 90-minute appearance as Portugal ran out 5-1 winners over the Faroe Islands.

Finally, Stoke City midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri was also among the assists as Switzerland laboured to a 3-0 win over the not-so mighty Andorra.