The latest round of EFL Cup action saw Brentford travel to Reading, while Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur went head-to-head at Anfield.
With Gameweek 5 of Fantasy Premier League (FPL) approaching, these matches provided another opportunity to assess minutes, returns and defensive contributions.
Here, we look at the key FPL talking points from both ties.
RESULTS
| Team | Opponent | Result | Goals | Assists | Leading DefCons |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brentford | Reading (a) | 2-1 win | Wilson, Carvalho | Ouattara x2 | Ajer (12), Damsgaard (12), Henry (10) |
| Liverpool | Spurs (h) | 3-1 win | Mac Allister, Gakpo, Szoboszlai | Mac Allister, Gakpo, Ngumoha | Nyoni (12), Frimpong (10), Kerkez (10), Gravenberch (10) |
| Spurs | Liverpool (a) | 1-3 loss | Gallagher | Fernandes | Tosin (11), Bergvall (11), Gray (9), Senesi (8) |
SELECTION/ROTATION
| Team | No. of starting XI changes made from GW4 | Players who kept their places (mins played) | Mins for other players |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brentford | 8 | Lewis-Potter (90), Ajer (90), Sangaré (45) | Balcombe (90), Diouf (61), Henry (90), Kayode (90), Damsgaard (90), Ouattara (77), Carvalho (77), Wilson (77), Yarmolyuk (45), Schuster (29), Hickey (13), Anthony (13), Thiago (13) |
| Liverpool | 10 | Araujo (90) | Mamardashvili (90), Gomez (45), Kerkez (90), Mac Allister (90), Nyoni (62), Gakpo (90), McConnell (62), Ngumoha (72), Koumas (86), Jacquet (45), Gravenberch (28), Szoboszlai (28), Barcola (18), Isak (4) |
| Spurs | 8 | Gray (90), Bentancur (57), Marmoush (90) | Dubravka (90), Senesi (90), Tosin (90), Bergvall (90), Tel (85), Gallagher (75), Kudus (75), Fernandes (33), Robertson (33), Savio (15), Maddison (15), Solanke (5) |
SCOUT NOTES
BRENTFORD
- Keith Andrews made eight changes from the side that drew 2-2 with Bournemouth. Kristoffer Ajer (£4.5m), Mamadou Sangaré (£5.7m) and Keane Lewis-Potter (£5.5m) were the only players to retain their places. Sangaré only played the first half, while Caoimhín Kelleher (£5.0m), Vitaly Janelt (£5.0m) and Kevin Schade (£6.1m) were among the unused substitutes.
- Despite the rotation, Brentford carried plenty of attacking threat. They racked up 24 shots and 3.55 expected goals (xG), although Reading caused problems of their own. The League One side registered 17 attempts and 2.33 xG, eventually pulling one back from a corner. Andrews acknowledged that his much-changed team didn’t always look cohesive.
“At times we looked very, very good; at times it looked like a team that hadn’t played together much.” – Keith Andrews
- Dango Ouattara (£6.3m) produced one of the more eye-catching displays. His first-team place has become less secure recently, but two assists here strengthened his case for more Premier League minutes. He created both goals, while also threatening himself after the break with a shot and two headers. One of the latter forced an excellent save.
- There was also an encouraging performance from Mikkel Damsgaard (£5.5m) in central midfield. The Dane registered a shot and created four chances, while his 12 defensive contributions would have been enough for DefCon points in FPL. Ajer also reached the required mark with 12, while Rico Henry (£4.4m) recorded 10.
- Michael Kayode (£4.6m) offered plenty from full-back. He created one big chance and regularly joined the attack, although he wasted a good opportunity of his own from close range. Lewis-Potter, meanwhile, returned to the wing after featuring at full-back against Bournemouth, once again highlighting his versatility.
- Fábio Carvalho (£5.0m) marked his first competitive appearance in 318 days with a goal. Returning from a long-term ACL injury, he calmly converted Ouattara’s pass shortly before half-time. A Premier League start may still be some way off, but getting 77 minutes under his belt represented another significant step.
“It was just a blessing. It’s been a long, hard few months, but I was happy to be out there.” – Fábio Carvalho
- Callum Wilson (£5.5m) also pushed his case with the opening goal. The striker finished clinically after only three minutes and played a part in Carvalho’s strike by dummying Ouattara’s pass. However, Igor Thiago (£7.9m) replaced him after 77 minutes and had two opportunities to score himself.
LIVERPOOL
- Andoni Iraola made a huge 10 changes from the side that faced Fulham, with Ronald Araujo (£5.4m) the only player to retain his place. After operating at full-back in Gameweek 4, Araujo moved into central defence and completed another 90 minutes, underlining both his versatility and importance since arriving in the summer.
- Despite the rotation, Liverpool produced a good performance. Their intensity and high press caused Spurs problems, while they showed real quality with all three goals. Iraola was particularly pleased with the energy and aggression of his much-changed side.
“All the players have given us intensity, have given us aggressiveness. I think we’ve been good in a lot of parts of the game.” – Andoni Iraola
- There were still some warning signs defensively. Spurs fashioned several excellent opportunities, particularly during a late spell of pressure. Giorgi Mamardashvili (£4.9m) made big saves from Lucas Bergvall and Omar Marmoush, while Milos Kerkez (£5.4m) produced an important last-ditch challenge to deny the latter. The visitors eventually scored from a corner.
- There were significant rests elsewhere. Alisson Becker (£5.5m) and Victor Munoz (£6.5m) remained unused on the bench, while several other regulars didn’t feature at all. Alexander Isak (£9.1m) was limited to just four minutes at the end.
- Alexis Mac Allister (£5.4m) made the most of his opportunity after failing to start in the league at the weekend. The midfielder produced a superb first-time finish to open the scoring before setting up Cody Gakpo (£7.2m) for Liverpool’s second. Mac Allister later helped create another big opening for Szoboszlai with Liverpool’s press, making this a timely reminder of his qualities as he pushes to regain his league starting spot.
- Gakpo was another senior player to start and impressed throughout his 90-minute outing. As well as scoring, the Dutchman supplied the pass in the build-up to Mac Allister’s opener. Having recently had fitness issues, completing the match and producing a goal and assist was encouraging.
“Cody gives us not just the goals and the assists, he gives us also some physicality, he gives us calmness on the ball.” – Andoni Iraola
- Dominik Szoboszlai (£7.0m) only played the final 28 minutes but still made his mark. After scoring from open play against Atlético Madrid, the Hungarian repeated the trick with a spectacular long-range strike in stoppage time. He also missed a big chance, so the goal wasn’t his only opportunity to return. FPL managers will now hope that these midweek contributions start translating more regularly to the Premier League.
- Rio Ngumoha (£5.8m) also caught the eye, creating Mac Allister’s opener and playing a part in the move for Gakpo’s strike. The youngster lasted 72 minutes before Bradley Barcola (£8.0m) replaced him. Barcola had little impact during his brief appearance.
- From a DefCon perspective, Trey Nyoni (£4.9m) led Liverpool with 12 defensive contributions. Jeremie Frimpong (£5.4m) and Kerkez both reached 10, as did substitute Ryan Gravenberch (£5.9m). The latter achieved his total despite playing only 28 minutes.
- There was also some useful fitness news. Joe Gomez (£4.9m) made his first appearance of the season after injury and came off at half-time, but Iraola confirmed that the withdrawal was planned rather than a setback.
“Joe has been doing the recovery process very well… the plan was not a lot more than 45.” – Andoni Iraola
- Iraola also revealed that the withdrawals of Nyoni, Ngumoha and James McConnell (£4.4m) were largely down to fatigue after their energetic displays. Nyoni was cramping, while the Liverpool boss said Ngumoha “couldn’t have run a lot more”. There was no indication of a fresh injury concern for any of the trio.
SPURS
- Roberto De Zerbi made eight changes from the goalless draw with Everton, with Archie Gray (£4.9m), Rodrigo Bentancur (£5.5m) and Omar Marmoush (£7.0m) retaining their places. Despite the rotation, Spurs fielded plenty of senior players against a Liverpool side containing several youngsters.
- The 3-1 scoreline doesn’t tell the whole story. Spurs produced 17 attempts and 2.42 expected goals (xG), repeatedly getting into promising positions but failing to take their chances. Liverpool, meanwhile, generated 1.82 xG from 12 shots. De Zerbi felt his side had done enough to get more from the game.
“We played well, we created more chances, we shot more times, we got more corners than Liverpool. We could score more goals.” – Roberto De Zerbi
- That attacking performance provides some encouragement after a difficult start. Spurs had failed to score against Premier League opposition this season before Conor Gallagher (£5.4m) headed in Mateus Fernandes’ (£5.8m) corner. However, losing to a heavily rotated Liverpool side still leaves question marks ahead of Gameweek 5.
- Lucas Bergvall (£5.4m) was one of Spurs’ liveliest performers after missing out on a league start against Everton. The midfielder created three chances and registered three attempts, including a big chance that Giorgi Mamardashvili brilliantly saved. His 11 defensive contributions also underlined his work without the ball.
- Marmoush was similarly threatening. He produced three shots and created three chances, with Mamardashvili denying him what looked like a late equaliser. The forward couldn’t convert his involvement into an attacking return, but his underlying threat was encouraging after retaining his place from Gameweek 4.
- Mohammed Kudus (£6.5m) made his first start since January but failed to take advantage. He wasted an excellent first-half opportunity and had another effort saved after the break, without making enough of an impact overall. De Zerbi was nevertheless positive about having him available again and highlighted his ability to operate as a number 10.
“Kudus is more great news for us… because he can play also number 10.” – Roberto De Zerbi
- Gallagher’s goal was Spurs’ only reward, while Fernandes made an immediate impact after replacing Bentancur by supplying the assist from a corner. James Maddison (£6.3m) also looked lively during his 15-minute cameo, registering two efforts on target. De Zerbi described Maddison as a “special player” but stressed that he still needs to reach the required physical condition for Premier League intensity.
- Elsewhere, Mathys Tel (£5.8m) struggled to make much attacking impact despite starting, while Sávio (£6.5m) couldn’t capitalise on his brief appearance after replacing Kudus. Dominic Solanke (£5.8m) was another late introduction and had little time to influence proceedings.
- There was a change at left-back after 57 minutes, with Destiny Udogie (£4.4m) making way for Andy Robertson (£4.4m). The latter therefore received just over half an hour ahead of Gameweek 5.
- DefCon-wise, Tosin Adarabioyo (£4.4m) led the Spurs defenders with 11, while Marcos Senesi (£5.8m) reached eight. Neither managed a clean sheet, but Tosin’s total would have earned DefCon points. Bergvall also impressed in this department but fell one short.
- Finally, there was positive injury news concerning Pedro Porro (£5.5m). The Spaniard missed both Everton and Liverpool after feeling a minor muscular issue, but De Zerbi confirmed after the cup tie that he will be available for Saturday’s meeting with Aston Villa.
