The second international break of 2021/22 gets underway today, with over 200 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) players in action for their countries over the next week.
Many countries are only in action twice over the next week, having had to cram in a triple-header of matches over the last few international breaks.
There are some exceptions, however, notably in South America.
And it’s those CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers that could have serious repercussions for Fantasy managers in Gameweek 8, as we’ll discuss below.
NEW QUARANTINE RULES
We saw the likes of Emiliano Martinez (£5.5m) and Cristian Romero (£4.9m) miss out in Gameweek 4 thanks to quarantine rules surrounding red-list countries but there has been a change to the protocol since then.
New guidelines drawn up by the United Kingdom government will enable players who travel to red-zone nations during the October international break to play upon their arrival back in the UK, so long as they have been ‘double vaccinated’ against Covid-19.
Those players who have had two injections will be permitted to train and play club matches from the day of their return but will otherwise have to quarantine for 10 days in “bespoke facilities” in between their involvement on the training ground and on matchday.
WHO IS IN DANGER OF MISSING OUT IN GAMEWEEK 8?
For once, it’s not coronavirus that looks the main danger to the availability of our Fantasy assets in the next Gameweek.
This time, it’s the late kick-off times/dates in South America.
Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Colombia, Ecuador and Uruguay – all of whom will be represented by at least one Premier League player – will have World Cup qualifiers taking place barely 36 hours before Gameweek 8 starts:
FPL PLAYERS/TEAMS POTENTIALLY AFFECTED
- ASTON VILLA: Martínez (ARG), Luiz (BRA)
- BRIGHTON: Sarmiento (ECU)
- CHELSEA: Thiago Silva (BRA)
- EVERTON: Mina (COL)
- LEEDS: Raphinha (BRA)
- LIVERPOOL: Alisson (BRA), Fabinho (BRA)
- MANCHESTER CITY: Jesus (BRA), Ederson (BRA)
- MANCHESTER UNITED: Fred (BRA), Cavani (URU)
- NEWCASTLE: Almiron (PAR)
- SPURS: Romero (ARG), Lo Celso (ARG), Emerson (BRA), Sanchez (COL)
Everton and Spurs are at least in action on the Sunday of Gameweek 8, giving the likes of Romero an extra day for recovery – although it’s still a swift turnaround.
As for the rest of the clubs above, there are mixed messages over whether their South American players will be available for the next round of Premier League matches.
Liverpool are reportedly preparing to face Watford in the Saturday lunchtime kick-off without Alisson (£6.0m) and Fabinho (£5.4m), while Manchester United are said to be resigned to being without Edinson Cavani (£8.4m) and Fred (£4.9m) for their trip to Leicester City.
Chelsea will also surely not call upon veteran Thiago Silva (£5.4m) at Brentford, given how carefully they have managed him from international returns in the past.
City, curiously, omit mention of the October 15 matches for Gabriel Jesus (£8.6m) and Ederson (£6.0m), however.
And the Yorkshire Evening Post claim that Marcelo Bielsa expects to have Raphinha (£6.5m) available for selection against Southampton – although a start may still be a tall order, even if he does make the matchday squad.
There is better news from North and Central America.
Wolves previously confirmed that Raul Jimenez (£7.5m) would return from Mexico in time for Gameweek 8 (there is some debate over whether this means he will miss his country’s final game against El Salvador early on Thursday morning), while Ethan Pinnock (£4.6m) and Michail Antonio (£8.0m) won’t be representing Jamaica.
WHEN FPL PLAYERS ARE IN ACTION: A CLUB-BY-CLUB GUIDE
ARSENAL
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – Gabon – Oct 8 + 11
- Folarin Balogun – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- Mohamed Elneny – Egypt – Oct 8 + 11
- Karl Hein – Estonia – Oct 8 + 11
- Sead Kolasinac – Bosnia and Herzegovina – Oct 9 + 12
- Bernd Leno – Germany – Oct 8 + 11
- Martin Odegaard – Norway – Oct 8 + 11
- Thomas Partey – Ghana – Oct 9 + 12
- Nicolas Pepe – Ivory Coast – Oct 11
- Aaron Ramsdale – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Bukayo Saka – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Emile Smith Rowe – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- Nuno Tavares – Portugal under-21s – Oct 7 + 12
- Takehiro Tomiyasu – Japan – Oct 7 + 12
- Kieran Tierney – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
ASTON VILLA
- Carney Chukwuemeka – England under-19s – Oct 6 + 9 + 12
- Douglas Luiz – Brazil – Oct 8 + 10 + 15
- John McGinn – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Emiliano Martinez – Argentina – Oct 8 + 11 + 15
- Tyrone Mings – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Marvelous Nakamba – Zimbabwe – Oct 9 + 12
- Aaron Ramsey – England under-19s – Oct 6 + 9 + 12
- Jacob Ramsey – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- Jaden Philogene-Bidace – England under-20s – Oct 7 + 11
- Bertrand Traore – Burkina Faso – Oct 8 + 11
- Ollie Watkins – England – Oct 9 + 12
BRENTFORD
- Mads Bidstrup – Denmark under-21s – Oct 7 + 12
- Saman Ghoddos – Iran – Oct 7 + 12
- Mathias Jensen – Denmark – Oct 9 + 12
- Christian Nørgaard – Denmark – Oct 9 + 12
- Frank Onyeka – Nigeria – Oct 7 + 10
- Finley Stevens – Wales under-21s – Oct 8 + 12
- Jan Zamburek – Czech Republic under-21s – Oct 7 + 12
BRIGHTON AND HOVE ALBION
- Aaron Connolly – Republic of Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Shane Duffy – Republic of Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Jakub Moder – Poland – Oct 9 + 12
- Robert Sanchez – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Jeremy Sarmiento – Ecuador – Oct 8 + 10 + 14
- Leandro Trossard – Belgium – Oct 7 + 10
BURNLEY
- Nathan Collins – Republic of Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Maxwell Cornet – Ivory Coast – Oct 8 + 11
- Wayne Hennessey – Wales – Oct 8 + 11
- Conor Roberts – Wales – Oct 8 + 11
- Matej Vydra – Czech Republic – Oct 8 + 11
- Chris Wood – New Zealand – Oct 9 + 12
CHELSEA
- Marcos Alonso – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Cesar Azpilicueta – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Ben Chilwell – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Andreas Christensen – Denmark – Oct 9 + 12
- Kai Havertz – Germany – Oct 8 + 11
- Jorginho – Italy – Oct 6 + 10
- Mateo Kovačić – Croatia – Oct 8 + 11
- Romelu Lukaku – Belgium – Oct 7 + 10
- Edouard Mendy – Senegal – Oct 9 + 12
- Mason Mount – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Antonio Rüdiger – Germany – Oct 8 + 11
- Thiago Silva – Brazil – Oct 8 + 10 + 15
- Timo Werner – Germany – Oct 8 + 11
CRYSTAL PALACE
- Joachim Andersen – Denmark – Oct 9 + 12
- Jordan Ayew – Ghana – Oct 9 + 12
- Conor Gallagher – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- Marc Guehi – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- Cheikhou Kouyate – Senegal – Oct 9 + 12
- Wilfried Zaha – Ivory Coast – Oct 8 + 11
EVERTON
- Jarrad Branthwaite – England under-20s – Oct 7 + 11
- Lucas Digne – France – Oct 7 + 10
- Lewis Dobbin – England under-19s – Oct 6 + 9 + 12
- Yerry Mina – Colombia – Oct 8 + 10 + 14
- Jordan Pickford – England – Oct 9 + 12
LEEDS UNITED
- Charlie Cresswell – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- Liam Cooper – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Stuart Dallas – Northern Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Cody Drameh – England under-20s – Oct 7 + 11
- Joe Gelhardt – England under-20s – Oct 7 + 11
- Sam Greenwood – England under-20s – Oct 7 + 11
- Dan James – Wales – Oct 8 + 11
- Kris Klaesson – Norway under-21s – Oct 8 + 12
- Mateusz Klich – Poland – Oct 9 + 12
- Illan Meslier – France under-21s – Oct 8 + 12
- Raphinha – Brazil – Oct 8 + 10 + 15
- Tyler Roberts – Wales – Oct 8 + 11
LEICESTER CITY
- Daniel Amartey – Ghana – Oct 9 + 12
- Timothy Castagne – Belgium – Oct 7 + 10
- Patson Daka – Zambia – Oct 7 + 10
- Jonny Evans – Northern Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Kelechi Iheanacho – Nigeria – Oct 7 + 10
- Kasper Schmeichel – Denmark – Oct 9 + 12
- Caglar Soyuncu – Turkey – Oct 8 + 11
- Luke Thomas – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- Youri Tielemans – Belgium – Oct 7 + 10
- Jannik Vestergaard – Denmark – Oct 9 + 12
- Danny Ward – Wales – Oct 8 + 11
LIVERPOOL
- Alisson – Brazil – Oct 8 + 10 + 15
- Fabinho – Brazil – Oct 8 + 10 + 15
- Jordan Henderson – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Curtis Jones – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- Diogo Jota – Portugal – Oct 9 + 12
- Naby Keïta – Guinea – Oct 9 + 12
- Caoimhin Kelleher – Republic of Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Sadio Mane – Senegal – Oct 9 + 12
- Takumi Minamino – Japan – Oct 7 + 12
- Andrew Robertson – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Mohamed Salah – Egypt – Oct 8 + 11
- Kostas Tsimikas – Greece – Oct 9 + 12
- Virgil van Dijk – Netherlands – Oct 8 + 11
- Neco Williams – Wales – Oct 8 + 11
MANCHESTER CITY
- Nathan Ake – Netherlands – Oct 8 + 11
- João Cancelo – Portugal – Oct 9 + 12
- Kevin De Bruyne – Belgium – Oct 7 + 10
- Rúben Dias – Portugal – Oct 9 + 12
- Ederson – Brazil – Oct 8 + 10 + 15
- Phil Foden – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Jack Grealish – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Gabriel Jesus – Brazil – Oct 8 + 10 + 15
- Aymeric Laporte – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Riyad Mahrez – Algeria – Oct 8 + 12
- Rodri – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Bernardo Silva – Portugal – Oct 9 + 12
- Zach Steffen – USA – Oct 8 + 10 + 14
- Raheem Sterling – England – Oct 9 + 12
- John Stones – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Ferran Torres – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Kyle Walker – England – Oct 9 + 12
MANCHESTER UNITED
- Eric Bailly – Ivory Coast – Oct 8 + 11
- Edinson Cavani – Uruguay – Oct 8 + 11 + 15
- David de Gea – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Bruno Fernandes – Portugal – Oct 9 + 12
- Fred – Brazil – Oct 8 + 10 + 15
- Victor Lindelöf – Sweden – Oct 9 + 12
- Jesse Lingard – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Anthony Martial – France – Oct 7 + 10
- Scott McTominay – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Paul Pogba – France – Oct 7 + 10
- Cristiano Ronaldo – Portugal – Oct 9 + 12
- Jadon Sancho – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Luke Shaw – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Raphael Varane – France – Oct 7 + 10
NEWCASTLE UNITED
- Miguel Almiron – Paraguay – Oct 8 + 11 + 14
- Ryan Fraser – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Jeff Hendrick – Republic of Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Emil Krafth – Sweden – Oct 9 + 12
- Jamal Lewis – Northern Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Fabian Schar – Switzerland – Oct 9 + 12
NORWICH CITY
- Max Aarons – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- Dimitris Giannoulis – Greece – Oct 9 + 12
- Billy Gilmour – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Grant Hanley – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Adam Idah – Republic of Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Tim Krul – Netherlands – Oct 8 + 11
- Kenny McLean – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Andrew Omobamidele – Republic of Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Przemyslaw Placheta – Poland – Oct 9 + 12
- Teemu Pukki – Finland – Oct 9 + 12
- Milot Rashica – Kosovo – Oct 9 + 12
- Christos Tzolis – Greece – Oct 9 + 12
- Ozan Kabak – Turkey – Oct 8 + 11
SOUTHAMPTON
- Che Adams – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Stuart Armstrong – Scotland – Oct 9 + 12
- Jan Bednarek – Poland – Oct 9 + 12
- Armando Broja – Albania – Oct 9 + 12
- Moussa Djenepo – Mali – Oct 7 + 10
- Moi Elyounoussi – Norway – Oct 8 + 11
- Tino Livramento – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
- James Ward-Prowse – England – Oct 9 + 12
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
- Matt Doherty – Republic of Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Bryan Gil – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Son Heung-min – South Korea – Oct 7 + 12
- Pierre-Emile Højbjerg – Denmark – Oct 9 + 12
- Harry Kane – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Hugo Lloris – France – Oct 7 + 10
- Giovani Lo Celso – Argentina – Oct 8 + 11 + 15
- Sergio Reguilon – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Joe Rodon – Wales – Oct 8 + 11
- Cristian Romero – Argentina – Oct 8 + 11 + 15
- Emerson Royal – Brazil – Oct 8 + 10 + 15
- Davinson Sanchez – Colombia – Oct 8 + 10 + 14
- Dane Scarlett – England under-19s – Oct 6 + 9 + 12
- Oliver Skipp – England under-21s – Oct 7 + 11
WATFORD
- Daniel Bachmann – Austria – Oct 9 + 12
- Kwadwo Baah – Germany under-21s – Oct 6 + 9 + 12
- Craig Cathcart – Northern Ireland – Oct 9 + 12
- Juraj Kucka – Slovakia – Oct 8 + 11
- Imran Louza – Morocco – Oct 6 + 9 + 12
- Adam Masina – Morocco – Oct 6 + 9 + 12
- Ismaila Sarr – Senegal – Oct 9 + 12
- Ken Sema – Sweden – Oct 9 + 12
- Ozan Tufan – Turkey – Oct 8 + 11
- William Troost-Ekong – Nigeria – Oct 7 + 10
WEST HAM UNITED
- Said Benrahma – Algeria – Oct 8 + 12
- Lukasz Fabianski – Poland – Oct 9
- Pablo Fornals – Spain – Oct 6 + 10
- Alex Kral – Czech Republic – Oct 8 + 11
- Declan Rice – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Tomáš Souček – Czech Republic – Oct 8 + 11
- Nikola Vlasic – Croatia – Oct 8 + 11
- Andriy Yarmolenko – Ukraine – Oct 9 + 12
WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS
- Willy Boly – Ivory Coast – Oct 8 + 11
- Conor Coady – England – Oct 9 + 12
- Leander Dendoncker – Belgium – Oct 7 + 10
- Hwang Hee-chan – South Korea – Oct 7 + 12
- Ki-Jana Hoever – Netherlands under-21s – Oct 8 + 12
- Raul Jimenez – Mexico – Oct 8 + 11 + 14
- João Moutinho – Portugal – Oct 9 + 12
- Rúben Neves – Portugal – Oct 9 + 12
- Romain Saiss – Morocco – Oct 9 + 12
- Fabio Silva – Portugal under-21s – Oct 7 + 12
- Francisco Trincao – Portugal – Oct 9 + 12
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