Having recapped Tuesday’s international friendly action earlier today, our final pre-Gameweek 32 Scout Notes article focuses on the latest round of European Championship qualifiers and the Fantasy assets involved.
We also run the rule over England under-21s’ defeat to Germany.
Republic of Ireland 1-0 Georgia
- Shane Duffy (£4.7m) – 90 minutes
- Seamus Coleman (£5.2m) – 90 minutes
- Jeff Hendrick (£5.2m) – 90 minutes
- Robbie Brady (£5.4m) – 74 minutes
- Matt Doherty (£5.4m) – 8 minutes
- Harry Arter (£4.9m) – 0 minutes
- Kevin Long (£4.1m) – 0 minutes
Fantasy managers who are considering retaining/acquiring the services of Matt Doherty (£5.4m) for Double Gameweek 32 would have been pleased to see his name omitted from Mick McCarthy’s starting XI on Tuesday.
While rotation remains a strong possibility on the domestic front with Wolves in FA Cup semi-final action a week on Sunday, Doherty has, at least, only played 64 minutes for Ireland over the international break.
The wing-back’s below-par showing as an orthodox midfielder against Gibraltar on Saturday may have been the primary reason for Doherty’s demotion last night, with Seamus Coleman (£5.2m) and Robbie Brady (£5.4m) preferred at right-back and right-wing respectively in McCarthy’s 4-3-3.
Doherty came on for the final eight minutes of this latest Euro 2020 qualifier as Ireland withstood some late pressure from Georgia as they defended a 1-0 lead.
McCarthy hinted that Doherty may be a peripheral player under his regime after the game, with Coleman described by the new Ireland manager as “different class”:
Seamus Coleman is
different class. Doc came on and did a job, simple as that. I am unlikely to play them [together] again, as I did on Saturday.Means to an end sometimes, I thought it might work on Saturday – didn’t particularly. But he went on and did a good job helping us stopping them from scoring when Robbie had run out of steam.
Burnley’s Jeff Hendrick (£5.2m) lasted the full 90 minutes as part of a three-man central midfield, while there was a boost for Brighton and Shane Duffy‘s (£4.7m) owners ahead of Double Gameweek 32 as the goal-hungry centre-back shrugged off an ankle injury to play the whole match and register another clean sheet for his country.
Harry Arter (£4.9m) is an early injury doubt for Cardiff City’s own double-header in Gameweek 32, although his late withdrawal from the match-day squad was said to only be because of a “minor injury“.
Malta 0-2 Spain
- Kepa Arrizabalaga (£5.4m) – 90 minutes
- David de Gea (£5.7m) – 0 minutes
Two Double Gameweek 32 goalkeepers had quiet evenings in Valletta as Spain laboured to a 2-0 win over Malta.
David de Gea (£5.7m) remained an unused substitute, while Kepa Arrizabalaga (£5.4m) was barely called upon as his country predictably dominated both chances and possession.
The hosts managed just two shots all game, only one of which required Kepa to dirty his gloves.
Norway 3-3 Sweden
- Havard Nordtveit (£4.5m) – 90 minutes
- Joshua King (£6.5m) – 90 minutes
- Mohamed Elyounoussi (£6.0m) – 72 minutes
- Ken Sema (£4.6m) – 0 minutes
Joshua King (£6.5m) kept up his fine form for club and country with two attacking returns in his country’s thrilling 3-3 draw with Sweden.
The Bournemouth striker, who bagged a brace in Gameweek 31 and scored from the spot against Spain last Saturday, registered an assist for Norway’s opening goal when his tame shot was helped in by team-mate Bjørn Johnsen from close range.
King then got on the scoresheet himself when nodding in a Markus Henriksen cross on the hour.
Although Sweden enjoyed more of the chances and possession, King could have had other attacking returns and hit the bar with a header after just 15 minutes.
The Cherries’ striker also twice fired wide after being teed up by Martin Ødegaard.
Owners of Manchester City assets would have been encouraged to see Fulham defender Havard Nordtveit (£4.5m) be part of a defence that shipped three goals in 20 minutes, one of which was credited as an own-goal to the Cottagers’ centre-back following a Robin Quaison shot.
Watford’s Ken Sema (£4.6m) was an unused substitute for the visitors, while Southampton’s Mohamed Elyounoussi (£6.0m) played the first 72 minutes for the home side.
Switzerland 3-3 Denmark
- Granit Xhaka (£5.2m) – 79 minutes
- Stephan Lichtsteiner (£4.5m) – 0 minutes
- Kasper Schmeichel (£5.0m) – 90 minutes
- Zanka (£4.4m) – 90 minutes
- Christian Eriksen (£9.2m) – 90 minutes
- Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (£4.4m) – 20 minutes
- Jonas Lossl (£4.4m) – 0 minutes
- Phillip Billing (£4.5m) – 0 minutes
- Andreas Christensen (£5.0m) – 0 minutes
There was another six-goal thriller in Basel as Denmark completed a remarkable turnaround in Euro 2020 qualification Group D, coming back from 3-0 down in the 84th minute to salvage a point.
All was well for the Swiss as they surged into a 3-0 lead with just quarter of an hour remaining, with Granit Xhaka (£5.2m) scoring the second of his country’s goals with a superb effort from distance.
Xhaka, playing in central midfield as part of a 3-5-2, created a further three chances but provided concern for Arsenal fans when being replaced in the 79th minute.
His national team coach, Vladimir Petkovic, said:
Xhaka could not stay on the pitch. He asked me ten minutes before to be replaced. Granit had adductor problems, he could not do any more.
Christian Eriksen (£9.2m) played the full 90 minutes ahead of Spurs’ Double Gameweek 32 and was the inspiration behind Denmark’s late recovery.
The Tottenham playmaker’s 84th-minute free-kick was headed in by Zanka (£4.4m) to bring the visitors back into contention before Eriksen “assisted the assister” for his country’s second goal with a perfectly weighted through-ball for Yussuf Poulsen.
Eriksen created eight chances in total and had three shots of his own, two of which were on target, although Xhaka’s departure was a factor in the visitors’
Kasper Schmeichel (£5.0m) could do little to prevent any of Switzerland’s three goals and made a valiant attempt to stop Breel Embolo’s effort from point-blank range.
Stephan Lichtsteiner (£4.5m), Jonas Lossl (£4.4m), Phillip Billing (£4.5m) and Andreas Christensen (£5.0m) were unused substitutes, while Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (£4.4m) came off the bench for the final 20 minutes.
Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-2 Greece
- Sead Kolasinac (£5.0m) – 90 minutes
- Sokratis Papastathopoulos (£5.1m) – 90 minutes
Arsenal team-mates Sead Kolasinac (£5.0m) and Sokratis Papastathopoulos (£5.1m) shook off minor injury concerns to play the full 90 minutes in Zenica on Tuesday.
Kolasinac had been a slight doubt for this encounter with a shoulder injury, while Sokratis came into the fixture nursing an ankle knock.
Kolasinac was deployed in his usual left-back position for the hosts, with Sokratis forming part of a three-man central defence for Greece.
Neither player was directly involved in any of the four goals as the visitors came back from 2-0 down to gain a point.
Italy 6-0 Liechtenstein
- Jorginho (£4.6m) – 57 minutes
Jorginho (£4.6m) was substituted just before the hour mark as Italy ran riot in their second Euro 2020 qualification game of the March international break.
The Chelsea midfielder is a possible bench fodder/emergency substitute option for those compiling a Free Hit team in Gameweek 32 given that he has started all but one of the Blues’ Premier League matches this season.
The former Napoli regista played in his usual central midfield role in a 4-3-3 and had a comfortable evening as Italy racked up 41 shots against the Group J minnows.
Jorginho may have been on the scoresheet himself but selflessly allowed Fabio Quagliarella to score from the spot with two first-half penalties.
Armenia 0-2 Finland
- Henrikh Mkhitaryan (£6.8m) – 90 minutes
Armenia’s chances of qualifying for Euro 2020 took a further blow as they slipped to a dismal 2-0 home defeat to Finland.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan (£6.8m) captained his country and played the full match in midfield.
Arsenal aren’t in action until Monday evening so the former Manchester United midfielder will return to north London in plenty of time before the Gunners face Newcastle in Gameweek 32.
England under-21s 1-2 Germany under-21s
- Kyle Walker-Peters (£4.2m) – 90 minutes
- Phil Foden (£4.5m) – 90 minutes
- Demarai Gray (£5.4m) – 90 minutes
- Ryan Sessegnon (£6.0m) – 81 minutes
- Harvey Barnes (£5.5m) – 81 minutes
- Dominic Solanke (£4.7m) – 81 minutes
- Tom Davies (£5.1m) – 68 minutes
- Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.3m) – 22 minutes
- Hamza Choudhury (£4.3m) – 22 minutes
- James Maddison (£6.8m) – 9 minutes
- Ademola Lookman (£5.0m) – 9 minutes
- Angus Gunn (£4.3m) – 0 minutes
- Jonjoe Kenny (£4.2m) – 0 minutes
- Freddie Woodman (£4.0m) – 0 minutes
- Abdelhamid Sabiri (£4.3m) – 31 minutes
An England under-21 side missing Aaron Wan-Bissaka (£4.5m) fell to a stoppage-time defeat to their German counterparts in Bournemouth on Tuesday.
The Palace right-back, who enjoys a Double Gameweek 32 with the Eagles, withdrew from Aidy Boothroyd’s squad at the weekend with an unspecified injury.
Kyle Walker-Peters (£4.2m), Demarai Gray (£5.4m), Ryan Sessegnon (£6.0m), Harvey Barnes (£5.5m), Dominic Solanke (£4.7m) and Tom Davies (£5.1m) were all handed starts after being named as substitutes in last week’s 1-1 draw with Poland under-21s.
Solanke captained the side and scored on his home ground just before half-time following a deflected pass from Phil Foden (£4.5m).
Solanke had the hosts’ only other shot from inside the opposition box as the Germans dominated, although Foden was once again excellent in central midfield.
Boothroyd said:
I thought Phil Foden was exceptional and it was nice to see Dominic Solanke get on the scoresheet again. Foden has a lovely weight of pass and he has so much talent. The more he plays with us, the better he will get, no doubt about it. I am really pleased for Solanke because his work off the ball was terrific. He made some good runs and got what he deserved.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£5.3m), Hamza Choudhury (£4.3m), James Maddison (£6.8m) and Ademola Lookman (£5.0m) all made cameo appearances off the bench for the hosts, as did Huddersfield’s fit-again Abdelhamid Sabiri (£4.3m) for Germany under-21s.
Round-up
Dwight McNeil (£4.4m) came on for the final 25 minutes as England under-20s lost 1-0 to their Portuguese counterparts. Grady Diangana (£4.5m) was an unused substitute for the hosts, while Ruben Vinagre (£4.3m) dropped to the bench for the visitors.
Morgan Gibbs-White (£4.3m) was among the Premier League representatives who featured for England under-19s on Tuesday. The Wolves midfielder played the first half of his side’s 2-2 draw with Denmark under-19s.
An Arsenal side featuring Mesut Ozil (£7.9m) and Alexandre Lacazette (£9.4m) won 3-2 against Al-Nasr Dubai in a mid-season friendly.
Those two players combined for Arsenal’s second goal, which the French striker converted.
