An injury to a key player was the last thing that Liverpool and Arsenal needed in their penultimate pre-season friendlies.
But both the Reds and the Gunners were handed fitness scares on Wednesday – one more concerning than the other.
The key Fantasy Premier League (FPL) talking points from Liverpool v Bayern Munich and Arsenal v Monaco are covered in this latest Scout Notes.
Everton’s behind-closed-doors meeting with Monza on Tuesday is also featured.
ARSENAL 1-1 MONACO
- Goal: Nketiah
- Assist: Martinelli
JESUS INJURY NEWS
Gabriel Jesus (£8.0m) looks set to miss the start of the season after it was revealed on Wednesday that he had undergone a “procedure” on his knee.
Mikel Arteta delivered the news in the aftermath of Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Monaco at the Emirates.
“Unfortunately, he has had a little procedure this morning, he had some discomfort in his knee that has been causing some issues and they had to go in and resolve it. It’s not something major, but he’s going to be out for a few weeks I think.
“It’s a big blow because we had him back to his best, especially with the way he played against Barcelona, and he was in good condition, and we’ve lost him. He’s been feeling some discomfort in the last few weeks, we had to look at it and we had to make a decision and the best one is to protect the player and get him back as quickly as possible, so we decided to do it.
“It’s something related to the previous injury that he had and the surgery. He had some irritation in the knee and we had to get it resolved.” – Mikel Arteta on Gabriel Jesus’ injury
It’s the first real significant bit of injury news of the summer from an FPL perspective, as it affects the second-most-owned forward in the game.
Jesus’ ownership was north of 30% this morning but he has already fallen well beneath that mark, with the newly added injury flag set to escalate the transfers out.
WHY SAKA DIDN’T FEATURE
Bukayo Saka (£8.5m) didn’t get any game-time against Monaco either but the good news on that front is that he was only ill and even fit enough to take his place on the bench.
“He was fine, but afterwards he wasn’t feeling great on the bench, and we didn’t want to use him. I think he had some sickness or some illness, so we could not use him.” – Mikel Arteta
Arteta added that he thought Oleksandr Zinchenko (£5.0m), yet to kick a ball in pre-season, is “close” and is “going to start training”.
NKETIAH STAKES HIS CLAIM
The Arsenal line-up had something of Europa League feel, with three or four first-teamers starting but the rest of the side padded out by the second string. We can now expect the Gunners to go full strength in the Community Shield this weekend.
While the likes of Fabio Vieira (£5.5m) and Emile Smith Rowe (£5.5m) did little to suggest that they will be troubling the starting XI at Wembley, Eddie Nketiah (£5.5m) scored a timely goal to remind Arteta of his credentials while Jesus is out.
The budget FPL forward thumped home a Gabriel Martinelli (£8.0m) corner to cancel out the visitors’ early strike, also linking play well as the spearhead of the Arsenal attack.
It’s not a given that Nketiah gets the nod in Gameweek 1, however. Leandro Trossard (£7.0m) had impressed while leading the line in Jesus’ last absence in the spring, even ousting Nketiah from the side. Kai Havertz (£7.5m) also has plenty of experience playing up top for Chelsea.
Sunday’s teamsheet against Manchester City may tell us more.
ROUND-UP
Havertz isn’t even guaranteed to be in the team at Wembley, let alone leading the line. Declan Rice (£5.5m) was deployed in the ‘Xhaka’ role here, getting forward into the box and being denied a first Arsenal goal by a last-ditch tackle.
Trossard and Martinelli, sharing game-time down the left flank, both looked lively and had good chances to score.
The defending at the other end left much to be desired, with the usually dependable William Saliba (£5.0m) having an off-day. Monaco had numerous other scoring opportunies, Wissam Ben Yedder hitting the post from yards out, but the mitigation will be that 75% of Arsenal’s first-choice backline didn’t start this game.
Arsenal XI: Ramsdale, Tomiyasu (White, 62), Saliba (Gabriel, 62), Kiwior, Timber (Tierney, 62), Partey (Jorginho, 62), Rice (Havertz, 62), Vieira, Smith Rowe (Odegaard, 62), Martinelli (Trossard, 62), Nketiah (Marquinhos, 83)
LIVERPOOL 3-4 BAYERN MUNICH
- Goals: Gakpo, van Dijk, Diaz
- Assists: Jota, Robertson, Salah
MAC ALLISTER INJURY LATEST
Alexis Mac Allister (£6.0m) suffered a blow to his knee shortly before the interval of Wednesday’s match in Singapore, exiting at half-time.
Jurgen Klopp had some reassuring words to say after the match, even claiming that the World Cup winner could have continued.
“Yeah, knee on knee. He could have played on.
“So firstly I got the information that it’s too painful, so that was then clear that we will change. There’s no need to push him through.
“When I spoke afterwards, he said, ‘No, no, I would have been fine.’ But we didn’t want to go [with] any risks. It’s just knee on knee, bruise, that’s it. It was fine.” – Jurgen Klopp on Alexis Mac Allister
SZOBOSZLAI TO THREATEN TRENT’S SET PLAYS?
Another big-money summer capture, Dominik Szoboszlai (£7.0m), lasted 75 minutes on his first start in a fortnight.
His most significant contribution from a Fantasy perspective was a corner-kick he took approaching half-time – significant because it may have ramifications for the well-owned Trent Alexander-Arnold (£8.0m).
The Hungary international did have a reputation for a wicked set-piece delivery when playing in Germany. He promptly ‘assisted the assister’ against Leicester at the weekend when his corner resulted in a goal for youngster Ben Doak.
Alexander-Arnold wasn’t on the field for that pre-assist but he very much was for Szoboszlai’s left-sided corner against Bayern, with Andrew Robertson (£6.5m) delivering from the other flank. One of the Scot’s set plays, in fact, was nodded home by Virgil van Dijk (£6.0m).
It’s only one corner but it’s something to keep an eye on: a third of Alexander-Arnold’s chances created in 2022/23 came from free-kicks and corner-kicks, so his assist potential may be adversely affected.
DEFENSIVE WORRIES
Liverpool won’t meet the might of Bayern Munich every week.
Nor will they often finish a competitive match with rookies like Jarrell Quansah and Doak on the pitch. It was, indeed, after Klopp had changed his entire outfield team that Bayern scored their third and fourth goals.
But there was still plenty to be worried about from a defensive perspective going into Gameweek 1.
The yawning chasm down Liverpool’s right flank was notable, with Alexander-Arnold again drifting into midfield. This was a good advert for Ibrahima Konate (£5.0m) if nothing else, with the lumbering Joel Matip (£5.0m) not up to the job of covering for his ‘inverting’ right-back.
Above: Liverpool’s average positions v Bayern, via Sofascore
And while Curtis Jones (£5.0m) couldn’t really be blamed for the goals, the fact that Liverpool are again relying on him to play an unnatural ‘number six’ role is concerning, this close to Gameweek 1. Messrs Henderson, Milner and Fabinho have all gone, with no-one of that ilk coming in.
Maybe we don’t have to wait until Gameweek 2 or 3 to pounce on Chelsea attackers.
“Around the goals obviously not that great but there were a lot of other moments that were really, really good as well. The last line was good. We have to still adjust.” – Jurgen Klopp
POSITIVES GOING FORWARD
There were at least some positives in attack with four of the five main options getting attacking returns.
Diogo Jota (£8.0m) set Cody Gakpo (£7.5m) away for Liverpool’s first goal, with Mohamed Salah (£12.5m) claiming his sixth assist of the campaign when teeing up Luis Diaz (£7.5m) for a fine strike.
Salah was arch-creator again – he created a game-high four chances and had only one shot of his own – but did get into more threatening positions with Gakpo playing up top rather than Darwin Nunez (£7.5m); a better Jota pass here and the Egyptian likely scores.
The starting XI, bar Konate for Matip, did have something of a Gameweek 1 starting XI feel, with Salah, Gakpo and Jota lining up in attack.
Liverpool XI: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold (Gomez, 61), Matip (Konate, 46), Van Dijk (Quansah, 75), Robertson (Tsimikas, 61), Jones (McConnell, 75), Mac Allister (Nunez, 46), Szoboszlai (Clark, 75), Jota (Diaz, 46), Salah (Doak, 75), Gakpo (Elliott, 61).
EVERTON 2-2 MONZA
- Goals: Dobbin, Maupay
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£6.0m) made his (latest) return from injury with a 45-minute run-out in Tuesday’s training game against AC Monza.
The striker, who hadn’t previously played any part in Everton’s pre-season, lasted the first half in a 2-2 draw with the Serie A side.
Vitalii Mykolenko (£4.5m) was also involved at Goodison Park before being hooked at the interval. Likewise, these were the Ukrainian left-back’s first minutes of the summer.
No footage exists from the game but Lewis Dobbin and substitute Neal Maupay (£5.0m) bagged the Toffees’ goals on either side of the interval.
Loanee Arnaut Danjuma (£5.5m) played 75 minutes, although the presence of Calvert-Lewin and Maupay suggests he wasn’t stationed ‘out of position’ up top, as he was against Stoke City on Saturday.
Indeed, the Football Italia website appears to have him lining up on the left wing.
That’s Dwight McNeil‘s (£5.5m) usual spot; word is awaited on the severity of the knock that forced him out of the victory over the Potters.
His lack of presence against Monza wasn’t a giveaway, however, with it being a mostly second-string XI anyway.
Everton XI: Virginia; Higgins (Welch 30), Godfrey, Branthwaite, Mykolenko (Hunt 46); Garner, Onana; Onyango, Dobbin, Danjuma (Kouyate 75); Calvert Lewin (Maupay 46)
