FPL pre-season: Munoz + Eze return, Jota stunner + Slot’s Gameweek 1 clues

We’ve brought you the key Fantasy Premier League (FPL) talking points from over 100 pre-season friendlies already this summer – and now we have our last Scout Notes before Gameweek 1.

The final kickabouts involving Liverpool and Crystal Palace are our focus here.

For all the headline notes and quotes on the other 18 Premier League teams, check out the below links.

• READ MORE: FPL pre-season: What Pep said about Bobb + Savinho’s City debut
• READ MORE: FPL pre-season: Will Solanke start in Gameweek 1?
• READ MORE: FPL pre-season: Howe on Gordon’s fitness, £4.0m Johnson advanced
• READ MORE: FPL pre-season: Minteh scores, £4.0m Barco starts, no Watkins, ESR impact
• READ MORE: FPL pre-season: £4.5m forward Jebbison scores + Kluivert on pens
• READ MORE: FPL pre-season: Calafiori debut, Nkunku benched + Neto quotes

LIVERPOOL 4-1 SEVILLA
LIVERPOOL 0-0 LAS PALMAS

• Goals: Jota, Diaz x2, Nyoni
• Assists: Alexander-Arnold, Jota, Szoboszlai

The big guns returned for Liverpool, who contested two friendlies on Sunday.

The first, a thrashing of Sevilla in front of the Anfield faithful, had the hallmarks of a Gameweek 1 starting XI. That spelt bad news for anyone involved in the later, behind-closed-doors draw with Las Palmas.

Alisson (£5.5m), Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.0m), Virgil van Dijk (£6.0m), Luis Diaz (£7.5m) and Alexis Mac Allister (£6.5m) all got their first pre-season minutes as part of that stronger side. This XI included budget defender Jarell Quansah (£4.5m), who was solid enough apart from one major first-half slip that let Sevilla in.

“Ideally we would have had them from the start [of pre-season], all of them. Then, players like Virgil [van Dijk] and all the others that went off after 60, 70 minutes could have played the whole game. But I am pleased, if you look at the situation. These players had to go to a holiday, a lot of them came back really strong. And the ones I had from the start stayed fit for all the time.

“Yeah, pleased with the fitness level the team has, and also without injuries at the moment, and that is an important thing in pre-season.” – Arne Slot

Cody Gakpo (£7.5m), Darwin Nunez (£7.5m) and Andrew Robertson (£6.0m), also returning to action following international duty, had to be content with facing Las Palmas. In Robertson’s case, he’s had to contend with a post-Euros injury, so Kostas Tsimikas‘ (£5.0m) grip on the left-back slot will likely be loosened the fitter Robertson gets.

Gakpo and Darwin will, of course, have designs on starts themselves. It looks unlikely to come in Gameweek 1, with Mohamed Salah (£12.5m) and Diogo Jota (£7.5m) further ahead in terms of match fitness.

Luis Diaz joined them in the front three against Sevilla, staking his own first-team credentials with a brace. Jota thumped in a superb volley before that.

Salah’s absence from the attacking returns column is no huge cause for alarm. He had chances: one dink being hooked away from near the goalline, another trademark curling effort going inches wide. He and Diaz registered three shots each, Jota just one.

The heatmaps below (via Sofascore) illustrate the two wingers’ penalty-box prominence. Jota was almost Firmino-esque, doing as much deeper off-the-ball work as goalhanging. Even Dominik Szoboszlai (£6.5m), the most advanced of the three central midfielders, got beyond Jota at times. The third goal was one such instance.

Alexander-Arnold will be an interesting watch in the first few weeks while he adapts to Slotball. There wasn’t as much inverting as we’d have expected initially, although he did come infield from a more orthodox right-back station. It was from his cross that Jota thumped in that excellent volley.

He retained set-piece duties, too, alongside Tsimikas. Both full-backs were Liverpool’s leading creators, with three key passes apiece.

Ryan Gravenberch (£5.0m) took up the ‘six’ role, meanwhile. Few will be interested in terms of FPL but it does highlight the need for recruitment in that area.

“Sometimes that also had to do with the players we had available, the ones I’ve tried there. I think we’ve seen mostly Wata Endo there or Ryan [Gravenberch]. And in a previous game even Dominik [Szoboszlai] was a bit lower. But I have quite a good idea which player suits there, at this moment in my opinion, best.” – Arne Slot

Goalmouth action was in short supply in the later game. Gakpo missed one excellent opening, Darwin saw an effort chalked off for offside and Robertson hit the post. Few of this ragtag XI stood out, although Harvey Elliott (£5.5m) may have been miffed at being included in this team after starring in the US.

Liverpool XI v Sevilla: Alisson (Jaros, 62), Van Dijk (Gomez, 74), Diaz (Nyoni, 62), Szoboszlai, Mac Allister (Bajcetic, 74), Salah, Jota, Tsimikas, Gravenberch (Morton, 82), Alexander-Arnold (Stephenson, 74), Quansah.

Liverpool XI v Las Palmas: Kelleher, Endo, Konate, Nunez (Blair, 67), Jones, Gakpo (Morton, 67), Elliott, Robertson (Scanlon, 60), Phillips (Nallo, 67), Doak, Bradley.

CRYSTAL PALACE 1-1 NANTES

• Goal: Kamada
• Assist: Mitchell

Crystal Palace had their own stars returning from international duty.

Daniel Munoz (£5.0m), Eberechi Eze (£7.0m) and Marc Guehi (£4.5m) all got their first pre-season minutes, the latter still a Palace player for now.

The sharpness from the end of last season may have been understandably missing but the signs were otherwise good.

Munoz and Tyrick Mitchell (£5.0m) were as advanced as we’ve come to expect them to be under Oliver Glasner. Both repeatedly got to the byline, whipping in low crosses into central areas. Eze was the recipient of several of those chances, that razor-sharp edge just lacking from the England midfielder on his first friendly start.

Mitchell got his rewards in the second half when Daichi Kamada (£5.5m), operating in the vacated Olise role, turned in his low delivery.

Munoz lasted 55 minutes before exiting slightly gingerly from the field of play. Journalists present didn’t seem too concerned:

Odsonne Edouard (£5.5m) has made a decent fist of deputising up front in pre-season but the Eagles looked like they were missing the more predatory Jean-Phillipe Mateta (£7.5m) here.

Mateta has been away at the Olympics, reaching last Friday’s final with France. Local media expect him to return to the club before Gameweek 1 but his game-time on the opening weekend will surely still be in question, after six starts in just over a fortnight for his country. The last two went to extra-time, too.

He’s at least been in good nick, scoring five goals for Les Bleus.

Palace’s goal concession came from a set piece, with the Eagles otherwise not troubled much against a Nantes side that sat back.

Dean Henderson (£4.5m), now almost certain to start in Gameweek 1, made one fine stop.

Crystal Palace XI: Henderson, Muñoz (Clyne 55), Richards (Ward 83), Andersen, Guéhi (Riad 61), Mitchell, Wharton (Doucouré 61), Hughes (Lerma 61), Kamada (Sarr 61), Eze (Ayew 61), Edouard (Schlupp 61).

SIGN UP HERE FOR ALL THE TOOLS YOU NEED TO WIN AT FPL!