There were largely underwhelming results for English sides in Thursday’s European action. Tottenham Hotspur lost at AZ Alkmaar, Manchester United drew with Real Sociedad and Chelsea scraped a 2-1 win versus FC Copenhagen.

We pick out the key Fantasy Premier League (FPL) talking points from all three fixtures in these Scout Notes.

THURSDAY’S RESULTS

TEAM SELECTION/ROTATION

SPURS SUNK, KULUSEVSKI CROCKED + SOLANKE SCARE

Ange Postecoglou claims he always wins something in his second season but, based on the evidence of Thursday night, his run might be about to end. Spurs were quite wretched in their defeat to a Dutch side who always looked likely to win once they took the lead through Lucas Bergvall’s (£4.4m) 18th-minute own goal.

Spurs trailed by 12 shots to seven, with only one effort being on target. The expected goals (xG) tallies of 1.50 and 0.40 reflect their poor display.

They made two changes to the side that lost 1-0 to Manchester City on Gameweek 27 with Djed Spence (£4.4m) and Son Heung-min (£9.7m) preferred to Pedro Porro (£5.3m) and Wilson Odobert (£5.3m).

Without Dejan Kulusevski (£6.3m), they lack the attacking drive and cutting edge that made their offensive assets so appealing to FPL managers. The bad news for Kulu owners is that Postecoglou confirmed the ever-present Swedish midfielder won’t be back from his foot injury until next month.

“In terms of haven’t travelled, Deki Kulusevski is the only one. He got a knock on the foot and he’s not sure when really. He’s been able to train and play over the last few weeks. We’ve done some further investigations and no real clarity. Unlikely to be back before the international break, but nothing serious and no surgery or anything. Ben Davies is also back at the training ground with Richarlison.” – Ange Postecoglou

Even the small consolation of Dominic Solanke‘s (£7.3m) substitute appearance after seven matches out proved empty, as the forward picked up a late injury. He hobbled off with what looked like a hip problem, making him a doubt to face former club Bournemouth.

James Maddison (£7.4m), Brennan Johnson (£6.2m) and Son had plenty of sterile possession but never really looked like threatening the AZ rearguard. A set-piece routine that horribly backfired encapsulated their display. Maddison passed the ball behind an unsuspecting Son and straight to the opposition, much to the derision of home supporters.

“This was nowhere near the level we should be in terms of our performance. This is very disappointing, including from myself and it is a big wake-up call ahead of the biggest game of our season next week. It is tough playing away from home in the Europa League. We were sloppy and not performing how we should. Everyone is disappointed and we have to look at ourselves. No excuses and it was nowhere near good enough. It is just 1-0 and the tie is not finished. Next week we have to be much better than we were tonight.” – Ange Postecoglou

Lying 13th in the Premier League table and out of both cups, Spurs’ season hinges on next Thursday’s return leg. Postecoglou’s future could very well depend on it. So the best advice is to load up on Bournemouth players for Gameweek 28.

MAN UNITED FORWARDS NEED A FINISHING SCHOOL

Meanwhile, it was a frustrating night for Man United, having been pegged back by Real Sociedad in San Sebastian.

They took the lead through a rare Joshua Zirkzee (£6.5m) strike on 57 minutes but all hard work was undone by a penalty conceded by Bruno Fernandes (£8.3m). He handled the ball while trying to head a corner away.

Man United entered this match without Harry Maguire (£4.9m) and Manuel Ugarte (£4.9m), who picked up minor injuries at the weekend. It meant that Diogo Dalot (£5.0m) and Noussair Mazraoui (£4.3m) were the right flank of the 3-4-2-1 formation, where Patrick Dorgu (£4.5m) and Alejandro Garnacho (£5.9m) formed the left.

An evenly balanced match saw the Red Devils edge the shot count by 13 to 12. However, apart from Fernandes, they are struggling to score. With Amad Diallo‘s (£5.4m) season over, if the Portuguese talisman isn’t scoring, then nobody usually is.

Although Zirkzee did his bit, this goal was only his second of 2025. Rasmus Hojlund (£6.9m) hasn’t scored in 22 matches and Garnacho – who had five shots here – is goalless in 19. This probably explains why the unmarked Danish striker was so furious when Dalot failed to square the ball at one point. Ruben Amorim was also spitting feathers on the sidelines.

“I think it’s hard to say but I just imagine that Diogo doesn’t know for sure that Rasmus has the advantage. One thing that I’m sure, they are really anxious to score goals and to win games, so they are all doing their best. Sometimes they want to do the best, but they are not deciding the best way in that position.

“It was a clear situation. Rasmus did really well, Dalot did really well, the decision was not the best. The important thing is to move on and not stay like them, fighting, and let’s move on to the next opportunity.” – Ruben Amorim on United’s decision-making in front of goal

“He’s trying really hard. He gave everything, he made the runs. We know that Real Sociedad has a high line and he uses his pace to win, to fight. The other thing is he’s going to appear in the right moment, he has to continue to play, not be anxious.

“In that position with Diogo he did a great run, in the position, sometimes the ball comes, sometimes it doesn’t. He needs to think in the next way, in this case, in the next game.” – Ruben Amorim on Hojlund’s form

SWEET CHIDO MINE?

Even so, at least they are creating scoring opportunities. But given their lack of cutting edge, one wonders whether Amorim will turn to Chido Obi (£4.5m) – the 17-year-old who lit up youth-team football before whisking him away from under Arsenal’s noses. Obi has shown glimpses of great skill during recent cameos and – as he isn’t part of the Europa League squad – he may well be given the chance to haunt his former side on Sunday.

As with Spurs, Man United’s Europa League second leg is all-important as it is now their only remaining chance of silverware. Perhaps more importantly, it’s their sole chance of qualifying for next season’s Champions League.

With morale at the club at an all-time low, Amorim can ill-afford to risk the sort of hammering Arsenal handed PSV Eindhoven. Yet his priority now has to be Real Sociedad, next Thursday, under the lights.

This could well mean a rotated squad for the Gunners’ visit, one where we could Man United park the bus, defend for their lives and try to catch their opponents on the break. Maybe with the help of their young teenage prodigy.

JAMES + ENZO RESCUE ANOTHER PALMER FLOP

Elsewhere, second-half goals by Reece James (£4.8m) and Enzo Fernandez (£4.7m) gave Chelsea their latest Conference League win. But it was neither convincing nor satisfactory, particularly as Copenhagen halved the deficit to leave the tie still hanging in the balance.

Enzo Maresca usually turns to his B squad for this competition but turned to a few more big guns in Denmark. He deployed James in central midfield alongside Moises Caicedo (£4.9m), also deciding to give Cole Palmer (£11.1m) his first Conference League start in a bid to stop his alarming goal drought.

In the end, Palmer mustered only two off-target shots and trudged off after 72 minutes, looking disappointed with a poor display and a goalless run that has extended to eight matches.

Having failed to find the Southampton and Copenhagen nets, FPL managers must be wondering whether or not Palmer can break the curse on Sunday when desperate Leicester City come visiting. As Mohamed Salah (£13.8m) isn’t guaranteed to start against the Saints, Palmer is one of the more attractive captaincy options for Gameweek 28. But can we trust him right now?

GUSTO SCARE

An injury to Malo Gusto (£4.9m) after 25 minutes brings a further concern for Maresca, having started the Frenchman in three successive matches. Marc Cucurella (£5.1m) soon replaced him but Maresca did say afterwards that the right-back’s minor ankle knock should be fine.

“He is OK. He is better. They told me he can be ready for Sunday’s game, so hopefully, we can have him for Sunday.” – Enzo Maresca on Gusto’s injury

The head coach experimented by putting little-known 17-year-old Sumeira Mheuka (£4.5m) up front for his first Chelsea start but the Italian shelved that plan at half-time. A triple substitution introduced Christopher Nkunku (£5.7m), Enzo Fernandez (£4.7m) and Levi Colwill (£4.4m) for Mheuka, Caicedo and Benoît Badiashile (£4.2m).

The move reaped immediate rewards as, within a minute, the Blues broke the deadlock as James rifled a long-range strike into the bottom corner.

They soon went two up after winning the ball high up the left flank and Tyrique George (£4.5m) cut the ball back for Enzo to finish. But Chelsea’s defending continues to look suspect. Viktor Claesson had already hit Robert Sanchez’s (£4.5m) post before Gabriel Pereira was left completely unmarked to head home a curling free-kick. It makes the return leg interesting.

“They surprised us because over the last three years with this manager, they played two games in a line of five – so we didn’t expect that. First half we controlled the game and had possession, but we didn’t create chances. But overall we deserved to win the game and it was good to give all of them minutes.” – Enzo Maresca

If anything can be learnt from this match, it’s that – although Chelsea’s defence remains porous – James is emerging as one to watch. A prolific FPL points scorer in the past, he appears to have put these injury worries behind him and is increasingly being deployed in midfield. Missing the Southampton match might indicate that Maresca is still easing him back to protect his suspect hamstrings.

ENZO

Additionally, Enzo remains a great enabler at his price point. He’s scored twice in three matches and might be an excellent Gameweek 28 differential, as he’ll surely get chances at home to Leicester.

Palmer remains an enigma, though. So good for most of this season – he’s still the second highest scorer for FPL points, after all – the 22-year-old appears to have hit a wall. That said, his expected goal involvement (xGI) for the last few matches suggests the floodgates will open soon enough.