The Dugout Gazette, 2 October

Midweek briefing

There were no Premier League, Championship, League One or League Two league fixtures from Monday 28 September to Thursday 1 October. All four divisions are inside the extended September–October international window, so no league scores exist from those competitions this midweek.

The football came from the UEFA Nations League, international friendlies and the National League. England won for the first time in this campaign, Wales claimed a first League A victory, Germany finally won under Jürgen Klopp and Portugal stayed perfect.

The Championship returns on Friday 9 October. League One and League Two return to league action on Saturday 3 October. England are also back in action on Saturday, away to Croatia.

“A blank midweek still leaves plenty of decisions to make.”

Results board

UEFA Nations League: Monday 28 September

• Georgia 0-0 Ukraine
• Northern Ireland 0-0 Hungary
• Armenia 2-3 Montenegro
• Latvia 0-0 Cyprus
• Belgium 0-1 France
• Turkey 1-4 Italy
• Romania 2-4 Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Sweden 3-1 Poland

UEFA Nations League: Tuesday 29 September

• Czech Republic 0-2 England
• Spain 4-1 Croatia
• Scotland 0-3 Switzerland
• Slovenia 2-0 North Macedonia
• Finland 0-0 Belarus
• Moldova 1-1 Faroe Islands
• Slovakia 2-1 Kazakhstan
• San Marino 0-3 Albania
• Bulgaria 0-0 Estonia
• Luxembourg 0-3 Iceland

UEFA Nations League: Thursday 1 October

• Germany 2-0 Serbia
• Denmark 2-4 Portugal
• Wales 2-1 Norway
• Greece 2-2 Netherlands
• Republic of Ireland 2-2 Austria
• Israel 0-0 Kosovo
• Azerbaijan 0-0 Liechtenstein
• Malta 1-1 Gibraltar

International friendlies and other internationals

• Japan 2-1 Venezuela: Monday 28 September
• Korea Republic 1-4 Uruguay: Monday 28 September
• Australia 2-4 Brazil: Tuesday 29 September
• Football Union of Russia 2-0 Iran: Tuesday 29 September
• USA 4-2 Chile: Wednesday 30 September
• Mexico 1-1 Peru: Wednesday 30 September
• Lithuania 3-0 Andorra: Wednesday 30 September

National League

Tuesday 29 September

• AFC Fylde 0-2 Carlisle United
• Barrow 3-0 Scunthorpe United
• Boreham Wood 3-1 Kidderminster Harriers
• Forest Green Rovers 1-1 Wealdstone
• Gateshead 0-1 Altrincham
• Hartlepool United 0-1 Harrogate Town
• Hornchurch 2-1 Aldershot Town
• Woking 2-4 Solihull Moors
• Yeovil Town 1-1 Worthing

Wednesday 30 September

• Eastleigh 1-1 Southend United
• Tamworth 2-0 Sutton United

There were no Premier League fixtures, no Championship fixtures, no League One league fixtures and no League Two league fixtures this midweek.

Key decisions

Czech Republic 0-2 England

England recorded their first Nations League win of the campaign in Prague. The match changed in the 25th minute when Czech midfielder Pavel Sulc was sent off after a VAR review for a high challenge on Elliot Anderson. Anthony Gordon headed in a Trent Alexander-Arnold cross in the 47th minute, before Harry Kane swept home a loose ball on 69 minutes for his 87th international goal.

Wales 2-1 Norway

Oscar Bobb put Norway ahead inside 11 minutes, but Torbjørn Heggem was sent off for denying a goalscoring opportunity. Daniel James levelled before half-time, and Neco Williams lashed home a free-kick to complete the comeback. It was Wales’ first Nations League League A victory at the ninth attempt, after one draw and seven defeats. Erling Haaland was kept quiet throughout.

Germany’s 2-0 win over Serbia was Jürgen Klopp’s first victory as Germany coach. Tom Bischof and Florian Wirtz scored, following a 1-1 draw with the Netherlands and a 1-0 defeat to Greece.

Portugal beat Denmark 4-2 without Cristiano Ronaldo, who had left the camp. João Cancelo, Gonçalo Ramos, Vitinha and substitute João Félix scored for Portugal, with Mikkel Damsgaard and Rasmus Højlund replying for Denmark.

Table and form notes

• The Premier League table did not move because there were no fixtures. Manchester City remain top after Matchweek 5, with Erling Haaland still the leading scorer.
• Bradford City lead League One with 15 points from seven matches.
• Sheffield Wednesday are second in League One with 14 points from seven matches.
• League Two remains tight at the top after last weekend’s results. Barnet, Cheltenham Town and Bristol Rovers are level on 15 points.
• York City have 14 points.
• Walsall also have 14 points and remain unbeaten.
• No EFL tables moved this midweek.

Weekend noticeboard

Premier League

There are no Premier League fixtures on Saturday 3 or Sunday 4 October. The league returns with Gameweek 6 on Saturday 10 October, with the FPL deadline at 11:00 BST that morning.

Championship

There are no Championship fixtures this weekend. The division restarts on Friday 9 October:

• West Ham United v Queens Park Rangers, 20:00

League One: Saturday 3 October

All matches are scheduled for 15:00 unless stated.

• Burton Albion v Huddersfield Town
• Leyton Orient v Plymouth Argyle
• Reading v Bradford City

Postponed because of international call-ups:

• AFC Wimbledon v Stevenage
• Barnsley v Milton Keynes Dons
• Bromley v Wycombe Wanderers
• Luton Town v Doncaster Rovers
• Peterborough United v Notts County
• Wigan Athletic v Mansfield Town

League Two: Saturday 3 October

• Chesterfield v Tranmere Rovers, 12:30
• Accrington Stanley v Cheltenham Town, 15:00
• Crewe Alexandra v Bristol Rovers, 15:00
• Exeter City v Rotherham United, 15:00
• Gillingham v Newport County, 15:00
• Grimsby Town v Shrewsbury Town, 15:00
• Rochdale v Swindon Town, 15:00
• Salford City v Fleetwood Town, 15:00

Postponed:

• Colchester United v Port Vale
• Northampton Town v Oldham Athletic
• Walsall v Crawley Town

Nations League

• Croatia v England, Saturday 3 October, 17:00
• Wales v Denmark, Sunday 4 October, 19:45

Reading host League One leaders Bradford City. Chesterfield v Tranmere Rovers is the early League Two kick-off. Walsall’s home game with Crawley Town is off because of international call-ups, so their unbeaten run waits.

Fantasy desk

FPL Gameweek 6 has an 11:00 BST deadline on Saturday 10 October. The fixtures are:

• Arsenal v Leeds
• Aston Villa v Brentford
• Chelsea v Bournemouth
• Ipswich v Fulham
• Sunderland v Brighton
• Manchester United v Tottenham
• Crystal Palace v Nottingham Forest
• Hull v Everton
• Liverpool v Manchester City
• Coventry v Newcastle

Liverpool v Manchester City is the standout difficult fixture. Everton away at Hull and Manchester United at home to Tottenham are among the friendlier fixtures on the card.

Pascal Gross is the leading form player on 47 points, with a form score of 11.2. He is also the most transferred-in player by a significant margin.

Other leading form options include:

• James Tarkowski: Everton, defender, 43 points, form 9.2
• Kevin Schade: Brentford, midfielder, 39 points, form 9.0
• Bruno Fernandes: Manchester United, 31 points, form 7.2
• Lewis Hall: Newcastle, defender, 31 points, form 7.0
• Harvey Barnes: Newcastle, 28 points, form 6.5

Differential options under 10% ownership include Tyrick Mitchell, Mohamed Belloumi, Charalampos Kostoulas, Luka Vuskovic and Harvey Barnes.

Erling Haaland remains the leading captaincy option for managers protecting rank, despite Manchester City’s trip to Liverpool. Pascal Gross is the popular differential captain for Brighton’s home match with Sunderland.

The international window has created fitness uncertainty, so managers should wait for team news rather than move early. Players to monitor include:

• Alexander Isak, returned to Liverpool with an injury from international duty
• Kai Havertz: hamstring issue picked up with Germany
• Brian Brobbey: hamstring issue while on international duty with Sunderland
• Cole Palmer, withdrew from the England squad
• João Pedro, withdrew from the Brazil squad
• Cody Gakpo, doubt
• Antoine Semenyo, doubt
• Benjamin Šeško, knock at Manchester United
• Marcus Rashford, knock at Manchester United
• Anthony Elanga, no return date at Newcastle
• Kaoru Mitoma, monitor
• William Saliba, monitor
• Joelinton, monitor

Bruno Fernandes is available despite recent fitness concerns. Several Brighton and Newcastle assets are rising in price, including Gross, Schade, Kostoulas, Maxim De Cuyper and Hall.

Check team news and yellow flags immediately before the 11:00 BST deadline on 10 October.

Manager’s view

A blank midweek for the EFL is not an empty week. It is a week of squad planning: international minutes, recovery, late fitness news and the question of who is actually ready for the next league game.

That is the same judgement The Dugout asks of you. Transfers, contract negotiations, tactics, finances, scouting, youth development and match preparation all connect, while results arrive through rich text match narration rather than an animated engine.

The Dugout is a deep, text-based football management game coming soon on iOS and Android, a one-off £5.99 purchase with no subscriptions and no in-app purchases, plus a free demo. Explore the features or join our Discord.