EFL Cup notes: Player rests, minutes played + key FPL takeaways

A total of 10 Premier League clubs were in midweek EFL Cup fourth-round action, with six progressing to the quarter-finals.

We’ll bring you up to speed with all you need to know from a Fantasy Premier League (FPL) perspective, from minutes played to any wider talking points.

INJURY UPDATES

These sides added a few flags to FPL over the last few days.

A separate piece covers the latest team news for Gameweek 11 but, if you’re looking for a quick round-up of what’s new, these players were freshly flagged following their respective cup ties having either missed out or come off with an injury:

• Emile Smith-Rowe – Arsenal – knee (0% status)
• Casemiro – Manchester United – knock (0% status)
• Matt Targett – Newcastle United – hamstring (25% status)
• Kurt Zouma – West Ham United – knee (75% status)

TEAM SELECTION/ROTATION

KEY EFL CUP NOTES

GORDON AND BOWEN USED UP FRONT

Popular FPL midfielders Anthony Gordon (£5.7m) and Jarrod Bowen (£7.4m) were both used as centre-forwards in their sides’ victories.

For the Newcastle man, it’s to protect Callum Wilson (£7.8m) at a time when Alexander Isak (£7.4m) is already on the sidelines. Gordon is, effectively, third in line for the striker role at Newcastle at present.

However, for Bowen, manager David Moyes has already spoken in recent times about experimenting with him up front.

“He is still not ready yet [to be a forward], and probably there is the history here of Marko Arnautovic from a winger to a centre forward, and Michail Antonio. Can Jarrod be a number nine? We are still sort of in the manufacturing stage to see if we think that can happen.” – David Moyes on Jarrod Bowen, speaking in October

Michail Antonio is goalless from starting West Ham’s last seven league games but Bowen scored here to put them 3-0 up. His 20.7% ownership will be curious about this potential positional switch.

LOTS OF MINUTES FOR PALMER AND TSIMIKAS

Well done to those who immediately bought Liverpool left-back Kostas Tsimikas (£4.6m) once Andrew Robertson (£6.5m) seriously injured his shoulder. They’ve been rewarded with two immediate clean sheets.

However, with Jurgen Klopp saying before Gameweek 9 that the Greek international “cannot play all the games from now on, so we need other options as well”, there could be some slight concern that his 90 midweek minutes could mean someone else gets the nod at Luton Town on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Cole Palmer (£5.0m) has been Chelsea’s best attacker when starting the last four league matches. He played almost a full game here too, setting up the second goal.

Other interesting FPL names to keep their starting spot and play big minutes included Mohamed Salah (£12.8m), Dominik Szoboszlai (£7.1m), Raheem Sterling (£6.9m) and Harry Maguire (£4.2m).

UNUSED LASCELLES AND TAYLOR

On the other hand, those needing cheap defensive enablers Charlie Taylor (£3.9m) and Jamaal Lascelles (£4.0m) to keep starting will be relieved to see the pair fully rested.

Goalkeepers Bernd Leno (£4.7m), Alphonse Areola (£4.3m), Nick Pope (£5.5m) and Alisson Becker (£5.6m) made way for their patient understudies, as defenders Virgil van Dijk (£6.1m), William Saliba (£5.2m) and Fabian Schar (£5.2m) were also unused.

Furthermore, a bunch of highly-owned FPL picks made cameo appearances of no more than 30 minutes. We’re talking Kieran Trippier (£7.0m), Bukayo Saka (£8.6m), Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.9m), Dan Burn (£4.7m), Bruno Fernandes (£8.3m) and Darwin Nunez (£7.5m).

QUARTER-FINAL SCHEDULE

Soon afterwards, the quarter-final draw was made.

With Liverpool and West Ham playing on the Sunday of Gameweek 17 and the Saturday of Gameweek 18, there’s less of a rest surrounding their match which will presumably take place on Wednesday 20 December.

The other four Premier League sides appear on Gameweek 17’s Saturday, potentially meaning slightly less rotation risk for their players.

POCHETTINO ON JAMES

Injury-prone Chelsea full-back Reece James (£5.3m) started for the first time since Gameweek 1 and lasted an hour. In case any managers feel the urge to purchase such an attacking talent, Mauricio Pochettino’s post-match comments stressed the importance of managing his minutes.

“After 15 minutes he started to feel tired and we were checking from the second half. He was a little bit tired and we need to be careful how we manage him. The plan is to go little by little. He’s an amazing player, for me one of the best full-backs in the world. The temptation is ok, come on go and play 90 minutes but we need to be careful. Little by little he is going to get fit and cope with the demand of the games.” – Mauricio Pochettino on Reece James

By the time the Blues’ fixtures improve for the better between Gameweeks 16 and 24, perhaps James will be up to speed and ready to make a serious FPL impact.

WAN-BISSAKA RETURN COULD AFFECT DALOT

Two down to Newcastle at half-time, Erik ten Hag removed Diogo Dalot (£4.9m) and brought on Aaron Wan-Bissaka (£4.4m) for his first appearance since picking up a hamstring injury in Gameweek 5.

It’s a blow to the 100,000 managers that have bought Dalot in recent weeks. He scored a Gameweek 9 goal at Sheffield United and has already been purchased by around 25,000 in the build-up to Gameweek 11. But, even though the Portuguese international is capable of playing at left-back, Wan-Bissaka’s return throws doubt on his line-up security.

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