Shaw injury latest, Kane remains out-of-sorts as Brazilians face late comeback

An injury to Luke Shaw was the key Fantasy Premier League talking point on Saturday evening.

The left-back had been one of the few bright sparks in Manchester United’s campaign thus far and deserved his England call-up, but is now a doubt for Gameweek 5.

We’ve also looked at the performance of Harry Kane as he continues to operate at a lower level compared to 12 months ago and the Brazilians set for a late return to England.

All that and more in the latest round-up of international matches in this Scout Notes article.

ENGLAND 1-2 SPAIN

Jordan Pickford (£5.0m) – 90 minutes
Harry Maguire (£5.5m) – 90 minutes
John Stones (£5.5m) – 90 minutes
Joe Gomez (£5.0m) – 90 minutes
Luke Shaw (£5.1m) – 53 minutes
Dele Alli (£9.1m) – 90 minutes
Jordan Henderson (£5.3m) – 64 minutes
Jesse Lingard (£6.8m) – 90 minutes
Kieran Trippier (£6.0m) – 90 minutes
Harry Kane (£12.5m) – 90 minutes
Marcus Rashford (£6.8m) – 90 minutes
Danny Rose (£5.9m) – 37 minutes
Eric Dier (£4.9m) – 26 minutes
Danny Welbeck (£6.5m) – 6 minutes

David de Gea (£5.9m) – 90 minutes
Marcos Alonso (£6.8m) – 87 minutes

A head injury to Luke Shaw was the biggest Fantasy talking point from England’s 2-1 defeat to Spain at Wembley on Saturday. He was withdrawn in the 53rd minute after his head made contact with Dani Carvajal’s hip and received treatment for some time on the field of play, eventually being taken down the tunnel while receiving oxygen on a stretcher. Reports claimed he was walking and talking after the match but he still remains a doubt for Gameweek 5.

“He’s sat up in the dressing room, talking and seems fairly comfortable. We’ll have to assess him a bit more overnight and tomorrow, but that’s definitely a good sign. Difficult to tell [if he was unconscious]. There’ll be tests. We won’t take any chances with his health, it was a nasty looking fall, but he is awake and talking.” – Gareth Southgate

The doubt over Shaw stems from the fact the FA confirmed he suffered concussion on Saturday night, after keeping him overnight for further tests. The concussion protocol that has been put in place dictates that players who have had serious head injuries should not take part in action for six days, which may rule him out of Saturday’s trip to Watford. The game itself falls outside the six-day restriction but reports circulating on Monday evening suggest Shaw may sit out the match at Vicarage Road.

However, the future remains bright for the left-back who continued his impressive club form onto the international scene seamlessly. Before getting injured, he had already provided an excellent assist for team-mate Marcus Rashford after starting the sweeping move by winning a brave tackle with his head.

“I think, as you say, great contribution for the goal. And it’s a big thing, we’ve thrown him in today after a few games of the season. He’s still… we have quite a few players short of minutes and sharpness, so to come into a game like tonight after so long out of the international scene is as tough a test as you can have. But he’s shown flashes that he can play a part for us. That balance with the left footer was an advantage for us.” – Gareth Southgate

England’s UEFA Nations League debut was another match in which Harry Kane looked tired and out-of-sorts. The only Three Lions player to touch the ball fewer times than Kane (20) was Danny Welbeck (3). Even subs Eric Dier (31) and Danny Rose (25) registered more touches. The Spurs man dropped deep again and his heat map for the meeting showed his average position appeared to be in orbit around the centre-circle.

Premier League players among the unused substitutes for England were Alex McCarthy (£4.5m), James Tarkowski (£5.0m), Kyle Walker (£6.5m), Fabian Delph (£5.3m), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (£5.3m), Trent Alexander-Arnold (£5.0m) and Marcus Bettinelli (£4.4m). Cesar Azpilicueta (£6.5m) and Alvaro Morata (£9.0m) warmed the bench for Spain all night.

Since Saturday’s match it has been revealed that Dele Alli (£9.1m) has withdrawn from the squad having picked up a muscle injury against Spain. Southgate provided an update on the Spurs midfielder on Monday, suggesting Alli may be fit for the visit of Liverpool this weekend:

“He has just had a minor strain and should be fine for his club at the weekend, I would think.” – Gareth Southgate

Demarai Gray (£5.5m) and Ben Chilwell (£5.0m) were added to the squad over the weekend ahead of Leicester’s King Power Stadium hosting England v Switzerland on Tuesday.

ESTONIA 0-1 GREECE

Sokratis Papastathopoulous (£5.4m) – 90 minutes

Arsenal defender Sokratis was the only Premier League player involved in this Nations League match and registered 90 minutes with a clean sheet to boot.

SWITZERLAND 6-0 ICELAND

Fabian Schär (£4.8m) – 90 minutes
Granit Xhaka (£5.4m) – 90 minutes
Xherdan Shaqiri (£7.2m) – 90 minutes

Gylfi Sigurdsson (£7.4m) – 90 minutes

Newcastle United defender Fabian Schär was heavily involved for Switzerland as they swept Iceland aside on Saturday to claim three Nations League points. The centre-back registered two assists on the night continuing to show his offensive threat for his country, for whom he has seven goals.

Liverpool midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri made his first start of the campaign in this match, ahead of a period in which Jurgen Klopp admitted he is likely to rotate his side. The former Stoke City man reminded us of his credentials by scoring his 22nd international goal.

Gylfi Sigurdsson lasted the full 90 minutes for a hapless Iceland while Stephan Lichtsteiner, despite being called up, was not used in the matchday squad for Switzerland. As yet, there is no indication that this was related to an injury.

NORTHERN IRELAND 1-2 BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA

Craig Cathcart (£4.5m) – 90 minutes
Jonny Evans (£4.9m) – 90 minutes
Steven Davis (£4.8m) – 90 minutes

There was little to write home about from an FPL perspective as Northern Ireland were beaten 2-1 by Bosnia & Herzegovina. There were 90 minutes for Watford’s Craig Cathcart and Jonny Evans in the defence while Steven Davis got his first start of the campaign having not yet featured for Southampton.

USA 0-2 BRAZIL

DeAndre Yedlin (£4.5m) – 90 minutes

Alisson (£5.6m) – 90 minutes
Fabinho (£5.7m) – 90 minutes
Fred (£5.8m) – 60 minutes
Roberto Firmino (£9.5m) – 75 minutes
Willian (£7.4m) – 29 minutes
Richarlison (£6.6m) – 15 minutes

Roberto Firmino reminded us of his goal-scoring credentials by netting in Brazil’s friendly win over USA. He led the line for 75 minutes in the first of two exhibition matches played in the United States. With Gabriel Jesus (£10.4m) not in the squad, he could start up front on Tuesday against El Salvador, which could put his Gameweek 5 start potentially at risk – especially with Liverpool playing in the Saturday lunchtime kick-off.

The same could be said of Alisson and Fabinho although there is probably less to worry about with these two. Goalkeeper Alisson feels more assured of a place than any other player given his position and the competition, while Fabinho is yet to feature for the Reds.

Likewise, Fred and Willian have been bit-part options for their respective clubs while Richarlison is still suspended for Gameweek 5. Manchester United’s Andreas Pereira (£4.8m) was an unused substitute for the encounter.

VENEZUELA 1-2 COLOMBIA

Salomon Rondon (£5.9m) – 90 minutes

Davinson Sánchez (£5.9m) – 90 minutes

Late returns are also a possibility for the two Premier League players involved in this particular match, also played in the United States. There were no goal involvements for either Salomon Rondon or Davinson Sanchez but they both played 90 minutes.

MEXICO 1-4 URUGUAY

Raul Jiménez (£5.5m) – 90 minutes

Lucas Torreira (£4.9m) – 45 minutes

There were several Fantasy talking points from this particular match. The first was that Arsenal midfielder Lucas Torreira was withdrawn from his first start of the season at half-time and spent the second period with an ice pack on his left calf muscle. There has been no confirmation of an injury at this point but the pictures of him during this international match suggest some assessment by Arsenal medical staff will be required before Gameweek 5.

On the opposite side of this Texas-based encounter was Wolves forward Raul Jiménez, who had a mixed evening. He dispatched a penalty after 25 minutes but missed another one in the 75th minute.

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