Zaha plays out wide as Southampton persist with back-three

Wilfried Zaha was deployed as a wide-forward in Crystal Palace’s first pre-season friendly, after playing as a striker last season.

Fantasy managers will be hoping that changes after his change of classification in Fantasy Premier League for 2018/19.

Elsewhere Southampton’s experimentation with a back-three continues to leak goals against lesser opposition although Nathan Redmond continued his impressive pre-season form.

Liverpool continue to largely use youth players with plenty of their key individuals still on holiday from the World Cup, while Wolves and Huddersfield got their summers off to a positive start.

In this edition of Scout Notes we’ve got all the goals, assists and Fantasy talking points from latest pre-season friendlies ahead of the 2018/19 FPL campaign.

FC HELSINGØR 2-2 CRYSTAL PALACE

Goals: Alexander Sørloth (£5.0m), Mamadou Sakho (£5.0m)

Assists: Sullay Kakikai, James McArthur (£5.0m)

Wilfried Zaha (£7.0m) made a second-half appearance on the left side of a front three as Crystal Palace drew with Danish side FC Helsingør. That is slightly wider than Fantasy managers were expecting after his striker’s role last season caused him to be reclassified as a forward in FPL.

Alexander Sørloth (£5.0m) scored the first goal for the Eagles after they had fallen behind to a Douglas header in the third minute.

Sullay Kaikai’s good feet allowed him the space to play a ball across to Sørloth to convert easily, making it 1-1 at the break.

Defender Jairo Riedewald (£4.5m) was deployed in midfield but had a poor game.

Julian Speroni (£4.0m) replaced goalkeeper Vicente Guaita (£4.5m) at half-time, with Wayne Hennessey (£4.5m) not involved in the match.

Also coming on for second-half displays were centre-back pairing James Tomkins (£4.5m) and Mamadou Sakho (£5.0m), as well winger Andros Townsend (£6.0m). All three of them played important parts in the match’s subsequent goals.

Sakho, who dictated play from the centre-back position, was the one to find the net for Palace, with just his second touch. Townsend’s corner was met by Christian Benteke (£6.5m) whose effort was flicked on by James McArthur (£5.0m) for Sakho to bundle the ball into the net.

Palace could have extended their lead soon after, but substitute Patrick van Aanholt (£5.5m) hit the side-netting when put through by Zaha.

Tomkins was unfortunate to score an own-goal in the 83rd minute, directing the ball past Speroni when trying to clear his lines.

CRYSTAL PALACE XI (4-4-2): Guaita (Speroni 45’); Souaré (van Aanholt 58’), Jach (Sakho 58’), Kelly (Tomkins 58’), Wan-Bissaka (Ward 58’); Schlupp (Lokilo 45’), Kirby, Riedewald (McArthur 58’), Puncheon (Townsend 58’); Kaikai (Zaha 58’), Sørloth (Benteke 58’).

Jiangsu Suning 2-3 Southampton

Goals: Manolo Gabbiani (£6.0m), Nathan Redmond (£5.5m), Sam Gallagher

Assists: Stuart Armstrong (£5.5m), Steven Davis (£5.0m)

Nathan Redmond (£5.5m) scored his second pre-season goal as Southampton beat Jiangsu Suning in China. The former Norwich City man continued to get forward as often as possible and was a constant threat, while manager Mark Hughes experimented with a back three again.

Manolo Gabbiadini (£6.0m) was given the nod to start ahead of Charlie Austin (£6.0m) and even netted in the 26th minute. New signing Stuart Armstrong (£5.5m) crossed the ball in from the right-wing for Gabbiadini to head back across goal to score.

Left-back Ryan Bertrand (£5.0m) was deployed at centre-back alongside Jack Stephens (£4.5m) and Wesley Hoedt (£4.5m) again. One of them is expected to drop out in light of Jannick Vestergaard signing from Borussia Mönchengladbach. Matty Targett took up the left wing-back role.

The hosts took advantage of the back-three in the 29th minute, a through-ball from Gao Tianyi opened them up for Zhang Lingfeng to score. Richmond Boakye picked up the scraps from a poorly cleared corner five minutes later to give Suning the lead.

Redmond’s 43rd minute effort from range, in the aftermath of a corner, put the Saints back on level terms just before half-time.

Substitute Sam Gallagher won it for Southampton in the second-half after a smart pass from Steven Davis (£5.0m).

Alex McCarthy (£4.5m) started in goal again, with Fraser Forster (£4.5m) coming on at half-time. New arrival Angus Gunn (£4.5m) is yet to form part of a match-day squad for the Saints.

SOUTHAMPTON XI (3-5-1-1): McCarthy (Forster 45’); Bertrand (Reed 63’), Hoedt, Stephens; Targett (McQueen 45’), Lemina (Clasie 63’), Ward-Prowse (Davis 63’), Romeu (Hojbjerg 45’), Redmond (Sims 63’); Armstrong (Gallagher 63’); Gabbiadini (Austin 45’).

TRANMERE ROVERS 2-3 LIVERPOOL

Goals: Rafael Camacho, Sheyi Ojo, Adam Lallana (£7.0m)

Assists: Sheyi Ojo, Naby Keita (£7.5m), Ryan Kent

New signing Naby Keita (£7.5m) made it two assists in two matches for Liverpool as they beat Tranmere Rovers 3-2 at Prenton Park.

The Guinean international lined up alongside fellow new arrival Fabinho (£6.0m) for the first time as they anchored a 4-2-3-1 formation in the first-half.

It was in the opening 45 minutes that Liverpool looked stronger with Rafael Camacho, Sheyi Ojo and Adam Lallana (£7.0m), playing in a number 10 role, scoring the goals.

Keita got the assist for Ojo, who had provided the pass for Camacho to break the deadlock. Ryan Kent, who scored against Chester, set up Lallana for his first goal of pre-season.

Tranmere were able to come back into the game in the second-half, after Jurgen Klopp had made 11 changes.

Ollie Norburn’s free-kick was spilled by Loris Karius (£5.0m) in the 72nd minute allowing Johnny Smith to easily find the net. Such a mistake from the goalkeeper, especially after his Champions League final display, will not give Fantasy managers confidence in the Liverpool defence. Klopp has been trying to find a replacement for Karius over the summer but opted to give Danny Ward a chance in the first-half, with Simon Mignolet (£5.0m) still at the World Cup with Belgium.

James Milner’s (£5.5m) slip in the 82nd minute allowed Amadou Soukouna to get a second for Tranmere, but Liverpool were able to hold on for the win.

LIVERPOOL FIRST-HALF XI (4-2-3-1): Ward; Robertson, Klavan, Phillips, Camacho; Fabinho, Keita; Kent, Lallana, Ojo; Solanke.

LIVERPOOL SECOND-HALF XI (4-2-3-1): Karius; Moreno, Chirivella, Gomez, Clyne; Woodburn, Milner; C Jones, Sturridge, Wilson; Origi.

BASEL 1-2 WOLVES

Goals: Rafa Mir (£4.5m), Diogo Jota (£6.5m)

Assists: Ivan Cavaleiro (£5.5m), Matt Doherty (£4.5m)

Wolves’s budget options were involved in the goals as the newly-promoted side beat FC Basel 2-1 this week.

Former Norwich City striker Ricky van Wolfswinkel opened the scoring with a header but Nuno’s side were soon level.

It was Rafa Mir (£4.5m), starting the game up front, who got the goal, side-footing into the roof of the net following an Ivan Cavaleiro (£5.5m) corner.

A full change of personnel at half-time saw another 11 players line up in a 3-4-3 formation after the break. Notably, defenders Barry Douglas (£5.0m) and Matt Doherty (£4.5m) were deployed in the midfield four.

Not surprisingly, Doherty soon provided an assist, setting up Diogo Jota (£6.5m), operating on the left-flank of the front three, to score the winner.

WOLVES FIRST-HALF XI (3-4-3): Ruddy; Hause, Batth, John; Giles, Goncalves, Watt, Buur; Ashley-Seal, Mir, Cavaleiro.

WOLVES SECOND-HALF XI (3-4-3): Norris; Boly, Coady, Bennett; Douglas, Gibbs-White, Neves, Doherty; Jota, Bonatini, Costa.

BURY 0-4 HUDDERSFIELD

Goals: Alex Pritchard (£5.0m), Rajiv van la Parra (£5.0m), Abdelhamid Sabiri (£4.5m), Matty Daly

Assists: Phillip Billing (£4.5m), Chris Lowë x2 (£4.5m), Collin Quaner (£4.5m)

Left-back Chris Lowë (£4.5m) put up two assists as Huddersfield Town recorded a routine pre-season win over League Two side Bury.

Alex Pritchard (£5.0m) gave the Terriers the lead in the first-half when Phillip Billing (£4.5m) pounced on a loose-ball and fed the former Norwich City man with an incisive pass.

It was the players brought on for the second-half who put the game out of reach for the hosts, though. Lowë’s cross was volleyed into the net by Rajiv van la Parra (£5.0m) shortly after the restart.

12 minutes later Lowë was the provider again, his cross this time headed into the net by midfielder Abdelhamid Sabiri (£4.5m).

Youngster Matty Daly scored the fourth and final goal, unmarked on the back-post after a cross from Collin Quaner (£4.5m).

HUDDERSFIELD TOWN FIRST-HALF XI (4-2-3-1): Hamer; Williams, Kongolo, Schindler, Hadergjonaj; Billing, Bacuna; Ince, Pritchard, Scannell; Mounié.

HUDDERSFIELD TOWN SECOND-HALF XI (4-2-3-1): Coleman; Lowë, Hefele, Stankovic, Smith; Hogg, Sabiri; Quaner, Daly, van la Parra; Depoitre.