The March international break, the final such break of the season, begins this week.
A significant number of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) players will be representing their countries over the coming week, so there’ll be a nervous wait to see if any new Fantasy flags are added ahead of Gameweek 32.
This article provides you with all the information you need to know.
NO CONCERNS OVER LATE RETURNEES THIS TIME
Usually, when we put these guides together, we give a bit more attention to players from the Americas. They often play on Tuesday night/Wednesday morning and are the last ones back through the door at their respective clubs, typically raising concerns about their minutes for the upcoming Gameweek.
Not this time, however.
When domestic football returns after the international break, it’s with the FA Cup quarter-finals. The last international fixture is contested in the early hours of Wednesday 1 April, while Gameweek 32 doesn’t kick off till Friday 10 April.
So, little worry about jetlag or quick turnarounds when the Premier League resumes.
WHAT’S AT STAKE OVER THE MARCH BREAK
Most countries will be playing friendlies over this international fortnight. The expectation, and no doubt the hope of most Premier League managers, is that minutes will thus be managed.
However, there are some international fixtures set to take place where there is plenty on the line.
The final six FIFA World Cup 2026 places will be settled during this break. Four will come from Europe, with the two other two from the inter-confederation route.
| Countries in World Cup play-offs | Premier League players involved |
|---|---|
| Suriname | Joel Piroe (LEE) |
| DR Congo | Axel Tuanzebe (BUR), Yoane Wissa (NEW), Noah Sadiki (SUN), Aaron Wan-Bissaka (WHU) |
| Jamaica | Leon Bailey (AVL), Ethan Pinnock (BRE) |
| Wales | David Brooks (BOU), Brennan Johnson (CRY), Tom King (EVE), Harry Wilson (FUL), Ethan Ampadu, Karl Darlow, Dan James, Joe Rodon (all LEE), Neco Williams (NFO) |
| Italy | Riccardo Calafiori (ARS), Gianluigi Donnarumma (MCI), Sandro Tonali (NEW) |
| Northern Ireland | Justin Devenny (CRY), Kieran Morrison (LIV), Trei Hume (SUN) |
| Ukraine | Yehor Yarmoliuk (BRE), Vitalii Mykolenko (EVE) |
| Sweden | Viktor Gyokeres (ARS), Victor Lindelof (AVL), Yasin Ayari (BHA), Gabriel Gudmundsson (LEE), Anthony Elanga (NEW), Melker Ellborg (SUN), Lucas Bergvall (TOT) |
| Poland | Matty Cash (AVL) |
| Albania | Armando Broja (BUR) |
| Slovakia | Martin Dubravka (BUR) |
| Turkey | Ferdi Kadioglu (BHA), Altay Bayindir (MUN) |
| Romania | Radu Dragusin (TOT) |
| Czech Republic | Tomas Soucek (WHU), Ladislav Krejci (WOL) |
| Republic of Ireland | Nathan Collins, Caoimhin Kelleher (both BRE), Jake O’Brien, Seamus Coleman, Mark Travers (all EVE) |
| Denmark | Christian Norgaard (ARS), Mikkel Damsgaard, Mathias Jensen (both BRE), Joachim Andersen (FUL), Will Osula (NEW), Mads Hermansen (WHU) |
NOTABLE OMISSIONS
In addition to the sidelined players who are detailed later in this article, there are some welcome rests for a few key FPL assets over this international fortnight.
Below are the most-owned FPL outfield players (3%+) who were omitted from their national team’s squads but not because they were injured.
This might be because they’re retired from international football, were given a break by their national team, their country doesn’t have any fixtures, or simply because they aren’t in their manager’s plans currently.
| Player | Club | % owned by |
|---|---|---|
| Robert Sanchez | Chelsea | 13.1 |
| James Tarkowski | Everton | 11.3 |
| Ollie Watkins | Aston Villa | 8.1 |
| Maxime Esteve | Burnley | 7.7 |
| James Hill | Bournemouth | 7.7 |
| Nordi Mukiele | Sunderland | 7.1 |
| Jean-Philippe Mateta | Crystal Palace | 6.5 |
| Richarlison | Tottenham Hotspur | 5.7 |
| Marc Guiu | Chelsea | 5.4 |
| Morgan Gibbs-White | Nottingham Forest | 5.0 |
| Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall | Everton | 5.0 |
| Danny Welbeck | Brighton | 4.8 |
| Nick Pope | Newcastle | 4.4 |
| Adrien Truffert | Bournemouth | 3.2 |
| Michael Keane | Everton | 3.2 |
NOTABLE WITHDRAWALS DUE TO INJURY/FITNESS
These players withdrew from their national team squads without kicking a ball:
- Leandro Trossard (Arsenal/Belgium)
- Gabriel Magalhaes (Arsenal/Brazil)
- Eberechi Eze (Arsenal/England)
- Bukayo Saka (Arsenal/England)
- Declan Rice (Arsenal/England)
- William Saliba (Arsenal/France)
- Jurrien Timber (Arsenal/Netherlands)
- Martin Odegaard (Arsenal/Norway)
- Eli Junior Kroupi (Bournemouth/France U21)
- Hannibal Mejbri (Burnley/Tunisia)
- Iliman Ndiaye (Everton/Senegal)
- Calvin Bassey (Fulham/Nigeria)
- Ilia Gruev (Leeds/Bulgaria)*
- Alisson (Liverpool/Brazil)
- Mohamed Salah (Liverpool/Egypt)
- Federico Chiesa (Liverpool/Italy)
- John Stones (Man City/England)
- Bryan Mbeumo (Man Utd/Cameroon)
- Benjamin Sesko (Man Utd/Slovenia)
- Dan Ballard (Sunderland/Northern Ireland)
- Mathys Tel (Tottenham Hotspur/France U21)
*personal reasons, rather than injury
- READ MORE: Mbeumo + Sesko injury latest after international withdrawals
- READ MORE: Arsenal injuries, O’Reilly brace + Pep’s tactics: EFL Cup final notes
- READ MORE: Kroupi injury latest after France under-21 withdrawal
WHEN FPL PLAYERS ARE IN ACTION: A CLUB-BY-CLUB GUIDE
An asterisk (*) below indicates that the players’ countries have a World Cup play-off semi-final this week, with the second date a provisional play-off final next week. Most countries who are eliminated at the semi-final stage will contest an as-yet-unannounced friendly in their second March fixture.
ARSENAL
- Gabriel Martinelli: Brazil – Mar 26 + Apr 1
- Christian Norgaard: Denmark – Mar 26 + 31*
- Piero Hincapie: Ecuador – Mar 27 + 31
- Noni Madueke, Ben White: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Marli Salmon: England U17 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Max Dowman: England U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Myles Lewis-Skelly, Tommy Setford: England U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Kai Havertz: Germany – Mar 27 + 30
- Riccardo Calafiori: Italy – Mar 26 + 31*
- David Raya, Cristhian Mosquera, Martin Zubimendi: Spain – Mar 27 + 31
- Viktor Gyokeres: Sweden – Mar 26 + 31*
ASTON VILLA
- Emiliano Martinez: Argentina – Mar 27 + Apr 1
- Amadou Onana, Youri Tielemans: Belgium – Mar 28 + Apr 1
- Ezri Konsa, Morgan Rogers: England – Mar 31
- Bradley Burrowes: England U18 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- George Hemmings: England U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Sam Proctor: England U20 – Mar 27
- Lucas Digne: France – Mar 26 + 29
- Leon Bailey: Jamaica – Mar 27 + 31*
- Lamare Bogarde: Netherlands U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Matty Cash: Poland – Mar 26 + 31*
- John McGinn: Scotland – Mar 28 + 31
- Victor Lindelof: Sweden – Mar 26 + 31*
BOURNEMOUTH
- Marcos Senesi: Argentina – Mar 27 + Apr 1
- Rayan: Brazil – Mar 26 + Apr 1
- Christos Mandas: Greece – Mar 27 + 31
- Alex Toth: Hungary – Mar 28 + 31
- Amine Adli: Morocco – Mar 27 + 31
- Ryan Christie: Scotland – Mar 28 + 31
- Djordje Petrovic: Serbia – Mar 27 + 31
- Veljko Milosavljevic: Serbia U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Alex Jimenez: Spain U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- David Brooks: Wales – Mar 26 + 31*
BRENTFORD
- Luka Bentt, Kaye Furo: Belgium U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Igor Thiago: Brazil – Mar 26 + Apr 1
- Dango Ouattara: Burkina Faso – Mar 28 + 31
- Mikkel Damsgaard, Mathias Jensen: Denmark – Mar 26 + 31*
- Jordan Henderson: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Romelle Donovan: England U20 – Mar 27
- Kevin Schade: Germany – Mar 27 + 30
- Hakon Valdimarsson: Iceland – Mar 28 + 31
- Ethan Pinnock: Jamaica – Mar 27 + 31*
- Kristoffer Ajer: Norway – Mar 27 + 31
- Nathan Collins, Caoimhin Kelleher: Republic of Ireland – Mar 26 + 31*
- Conor McManus: Republic of Ireland U21 – Mar 26 + 31
- Yehor Yarmoliuk: Ukraine – Mar 26 + 31*
- Julian Eyestone: USA U21 – Mar 28 + 31
BRIGHTON AND HOVE ALBION
- Maxim De Cuyper: Belgium – Mar 28 + Apr 1
- Jason Steele: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Freddie Simmonds: England U18 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Harry Howell: England U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Jack Hinshelwood: England U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Yankuba Minteh: Gambia – Mar 31
- Pascal Gross: Germany – Mar 27 + 30
- Charalampos Kostoulas: Greece U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Kaoru Mitoma: Japan – Mar 27 + 31
- Jan Paul van Hecke, Bart Verbruggen: Netherlands – Mar 27 + 31
- Diego Gomez: Paraguay – Mar 26 + 30
- Yasin Ayari: Sweden – Mar 26 + 31*
- Ferdi Kadioglu: Turkey – Mar 26 + 31*
BURNLEY
- Armando Broja: Albania – Mar 26 + 31*
- Axel Tuanzebe: DR Congo – Mar 25 + 31
- Lesley Ugochukwu: France U21 – Mar 26 + 30
- Max Weiss: Germany U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Martin Dubravka: Slovakia – Mar 26 + 31*
- Lyle Foster: South Africa – Mar 27 + 31
CHELSEA
- Enzo Fernandez: Argentina – Mar 27 + Apr 1
- Joao Pedro, Andrey Santos: Brazil – Mar 26 + Apr 1
- Moises Caicedo: Ecuador – Mar 27 + 31
- Cole Palmer: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Landon Emenalo: England U18 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Josh Acheampong: England U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Malo Gusto: France – Mar 26 + 29
- Jorrel Hato: Netherlands – Mar 27 + 31
- Pedro Neto: Portugal – Mar 29 + Apr 1
- Mamadou Sarr: Senegal – Mar 28 + 31
- Marc Cucurella: Spain – Mar 27 + 31
- Gaga Slonina: USA U21 – Mar 27 + 31
CRYSTAL PALACE
- Jefferson Lerma, Daniel Munoz: Colombia – Mar 26 + 29
- Adam Wharton, Dean Henderson: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Dean Benamar, Benji Casey: England U18 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Joel Drakes-Thomas: England U17 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Maxence Lacroix: France – Mar 26 + 29
- Jaydee Canvot: France U21 – Mar 26 + 30
- Evann Guessand: Ivory Coast – Mar 28 + 31
- Daichi Kamada: Japan – Mar 28 + 31
- Chadi Riad: Morocco – Mar 27 + 31
- Justin Devenny: Northern Ireland – Mar 26 + 31*
- Jorgen Strand Larsen: Norway – Mar 27 + 31
- Ismaila Sarr: Senegal – Mar 28 + 31
- Yeremy Pino: Spain – Mar 27 + 31
- Chris Richards: USA – Mar 28 + Apr 1
- Rio Cardines: Trinidad and Tobago – Mar 26 + 30
- Brennan Johnson: Wales – Mar 26 + 31*
EVERTON
- Jordan Pickford, James Garner: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Harrison Armstrong: England U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Tyler Dibling, Tyrique George: England U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Adam Aznou: Morocco U23 – Mar 26 + 30
- Jake O’Brien, Seamus Coleman, Mark Travers: Republic of Ireland – Mar 26 + 31*
- Nathan Patterson: Scotland – Mar 28 + 31
- Idrissa Gana Gueye: Senegal – Mar 28 + 31
- Vitalii Mykolenko: Ukraine – Mar 26 + 31*
- Tom King: Wales – Mar 26 + 31*
FULHAM
- Timothy Castagne: Belgium – Mar 28 + Apr 1
- Josh King: England U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Samuel Amissah: England U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Joachim Andersen: Denmark – Mar 26 + 31*
- Raul Jimenez: Mexico – Mar 29 + Apr 1
- Issa Diop: Morocco – Mar 27 + 31
- Alex Iwobi, Samu Chukwueze: Nigeria – Mar 27 + 31
- Sander Berge, Oscar Bobb: Norway – Mar 27 + 31
- Sasa Lukic: Serbia – Mar 27 + 31
- Jonah Kusi-Asare: Sweden U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Antonee Robinson: USA – Mar 28 + Apr 1
- Harry Wilson: Wales – Mar 26 + 31*
LEEDS UNITED
- Dominic Calvert-Lewin: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Anton Stach: Germany – Mar 27 + 30
- Ao Tanaka: Japan – Mar 28 + 31
- Jaka Bijol: Slovenia – Mar 28 + 31
- Joel Piroe: Suriname – Mar 26 + Apr 1*
- Gabriel Gudmundsson – Sweden – Mar 26 + 31*
- Noah Okafor: Switzerland – Mar 27 + 31
- Brenden Aaronson: USA – Mar 28 + Apr 1
- Ethan Ampadu, Karl Darlow, Dan James, Joe Rodon: Wales – Mar 26 + 31*
LIVERPOOL
- Alexis Mac Allister: Argentina – Mar 27 + Apr 1
- Rio Ngumoha, Trey Nyoni – England U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Hugo Ekitike, Ibrahima Konate: France – Mar 26 + 29
- Florian Wirtz: Germany – Mar 27 + 30
- Giorgi Mamardashvili: Georgia – Mar 26 + 29
- Milos Kerkez, Dominik Szoboszlai: Hungary – Mar 28 + 31
- Armin Pecsi: Hungary U21 – Mar 26 + 31
- Jeremie Frimpong, Cody Gakpo, Ryan Gravenberch, Virgil van Dijk: Netherlands – Mar 27 + 31
- Kieran Morrison: Northern Ireland – Mar 26 + 31*
- Andrew Robertson: Scotland – Mar 28 + 31
MANCHESTER CITY
- Rayan Ait-Nouri: Algeria – Mar 27 + 31
- Jeremy Doku: Belgium – Mar 28 + Apr 1
- Omar Marmoush: Egypt – Mar 27 + 31
- Phil Foden, Marc Guehi, James Trafford, Nico O’Reilly: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Max Alleyne, Rico Lewis: England U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Reigan Heskey – England U18 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Rayan Cherki: France – Mar 26 + 29
- Antoine Semenyo: Ghana – Mar 27 + 30
- Gianluigi Donnarumma: Italy – Mar 26 + 31*
- Nathan Ake, Tijjani Reijnders: Netherlands – Mar 27 + 31
- Erling Haaland: Norway – Mar 27 + 31
- Matheus Nunes: Portugal – Mar 29 + Apr 1
- Rodri: Spain – Mar 27 + 31
- Abdudokir Khusanov: Uzbekistan – Mar 27 + 30
MANCHESTER UNITED
- Senne Lammens: Belgium – Mar 28 + Apr 1
- Casemiro, Matheus Cunha: Brazil – Mar 26 + Apr 1
- Harry Maguire, Kobbie Mainoo: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Godwill Kukonki – England U18 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Ayden Heaven: England U20 – Mar 27
- Leny Yoro: France U21 – Mar 26 + 30
- Amad Diallo: Ivory Coast – Mar 28 + 31
- Noussair Mazraoui: Morocco – Mar 27 + 31
- Diego Leon: Paraguay – Mar 27 + 31
- Diogo Dalot, Bruno Fernandes: Portugal – Mar 29 + Apr 1
- Tyler Fletcher: Scotland U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Altay Bayindir: Turkey – Mar 26 + 31*
- Manuel Ugarte: Uruguay – Mar 27 + 31
NEWCASTLE UNITED
- William Osula – Denmark – Mar 26 + 31*
- Yoane Wissa: DR Congo – Mar 25 + 31
- Dan Burn, Tino Livramento, Lewis Hall, Anthony Gordon, Aaron Ramsdale, Harvey Barnes: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Sean Neave: England U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Malick Thiaw, Nick Woltemade: Germany – Mar 27 + 30
- Sandro Tonali: Italy – Mar 26 + 31*
- Alex Murphy: Republic of Ireland U21 – Mar 26 + 31
- Anthony Elanga – Sweden – Mar 26 + 31*
NOTTINGHAM FOREST
- Matz Sels: Belgium – Mar 28 + Apr 1
- Elliot Anderson: England – Mar 31
- Zach Abbott: England U20 – Mar 27
- Ibrahim Sangare: Ivory Coast – Mar 28 + 31
- Angus Gunn: Scotland – Mar 28 + 31
- Nikola Milenkovic: Serbia – Mar 27 + 31
- Dan Ndoye: Switzerland – Mar 27 + 31
- Neco Williams: Wales – Mar 26 + 31*
SUNDERLAND
- Noah Sadiki: DR Congo – Mar 25 + 31
- Chris Rigg: England U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Wilson Isidor: Haiti – Mar 29 + 31
- Chemsdine Talbi: Morocco – Mar 27 + 31
- Brian Brobbey, Lutsharel Geertruida: Netherlands – Mar 27 + 31
- Trai Hume: Northern Ireland – Mar 26 + 31*
- Omar Alderete: Paraguay – Mar 27 + 31
- Habib Diarra: Senegal – Mar 28 + 31
- Eliezer Mayenda: Spain U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Melker Ellborg: Sweden – Mar 26 + 31*
- Granit Xhaka: Switzerland – Mar 27 + 31
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
- Cristian Romero: Argentina – Mar 27 + Apr 1
- Kevin Danso: Austria – Mar 27 + 31
- Djed Spence, Dominic Solanke: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Callum Olusesi: England U20 – Mar 27
- Archie Gray: England U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Randal Kolo Muani: France – Mar 26 + 29
- Xavi Simons, Micky van de Ven: Netherlands – Mar 27 + 31
- Radu Dragusin: Romania – Mar 26 + 31*
- James Wilson: Scotland U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Pape Matar Sarr: Senegal – Mar 28 + 31
- Pedro Porro: Spain – Mar 27 + 31
- Lucas Bergvall: Sweden – Mar 26 + 31*
WEST HAM UNITED
- Tomas Soucek: Czech Republic – Mar 26 + 31*
- Mads Hermansen: Denmark – Mar 26 + 31*
- Aaron Wan-Bissaka: DR Congo – Mar 25 + 31
- Jarrod Bowen: England – Mar 27 + 31
- Ezra Mayers, Airidas Golambeckis: England U19 – Mar 25 + 28 + 31
- Finlay Herrick: England U20 – Mar 27
- Konstantinos Mavropanos: Greece – Mar 27 + 31
- Mateus Fernandes: Portugal – Mar 29 + Apr 1
- El Hadji Malick Diouf: Senegal – Mar 28 + 31
- Keiber Lamadrid: Venezuela – Mar 27 + 30
WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS
- Jackson Tchatchoua: Cameroon – Mar 27 + 31
- Yerson Mosquera: Colombia – Mar 26 + 29
- Ladislav Krejci: Czech Republic – Mar 26 + 31*
- Jean-Ricner Bellegarde: Haiti – Mar 29 + 31
- David Moller Wolfe: Norway – Mar 27 + 31
- Jose Sa: Portugal – Mar 29 + Apr 1
- Matheus Mane: Portugal U21 – Mar 27 + 31
- Hwang Hee-chan: South Korea – Mar 28 + 31
- Santiago Bueno: Uruguay – Mar 27 + 31
