The Dugout Gazette, 28 September
Weekend briefing
The Premier League and Championship remained inside the extended September international window, with no fixtures played on Saturday 26 or Sunday 27 September.
League One and League Two returned to league action with matchday 8 fixtures, although international call-ups caused seven postponements across the two divisions.
England’s UEFA Nations League match ended in a 2-3 defeat to Spain at Wembley. Spain took the lead through Lamine Yamal before England turned it around to lead 2-1 through Anthony Gordon and Harry Kane, but Spain came back to win through Álex Baena and Mikel Oyarzabal. Kane also missed a second-half penalty.
The Premier League returns for Matchweek 6 on Saturday 10 October. The Championship restarts on Friday 9 October, when West Ham United host Queens Park Rangers.
Results board
Premier League
No fixtures were played on Saturday 26 or Sunday 27 September.
The last round was Matchweek 5 on 19 and 20 September.
Championship
No fixtures were played on Saturday 26 or Sunday 27 September.
The last round was played on 19 and 20 September.
League One
All completed fixtures from Saturday 26 September:
- Cambridge United 1-1 AFC Wimbledon
- Plymouth Argyle 0-1 Burton Albion
- Stockport County 1-0 Peterborough United
- Wycombe Wanderers 2-2 Reading
Postponed because of international call-ups:
- Bradford City v Barnsley
- Mansfield Town v Leyton Orient
- Milton Keynes Dons v Bromley
- Notts County v Blackpool
- Stevenage v Sheffield Wednesday
League Two
All completed fixtures from Saturday 26 September:
- Bristol Rovers 1-0 Exeter City
- Cheltenham Town 2-1 Chesterfield
- Fleetwood Town 1-2 Rochdale
- Newport County 2-1 Grimsby Town
- Oldham Athletic 1-4 Salford City
- Rotherham United 1-1 Crewe Alexandra
- Shrewsbury Town 2-2 Colchester United
- Swindon Town 1-1 Accrington Stanley
- Tranmere Rovers 1-1 Walsall
- York City 3-0 Gillingham
Postponed:
- Crawley Town v Barnet
- Port Vale v Northampton Town
The weekend belonged to the divisions that played. League One stayed tight at the top, while League Two produced movement across both ends of the table.
Key decisions
Plymouth miss the chance to go top
Plymouth Argyle missed the opportunity to move into first place after losing 0-1 at home to Burton Albion.
Jack Armer’s deflected finish gave Burton all three points and continued their emergence as one of the season’s surprise packages. Plymouth remain fourth on 13 points.
Stockport edge managerless Peterborough
Stockport County beat managerless Peterborough United 1-0 through a scrappy Kyle Wootton effort.
The result lifted Stockport into third. Peterborough remain 23rd on five points, having scored only four goals all season.
Cambridge salvage a point
Zak Bradshaw rescued a point for Cambridge United in the 1-1 draw with AFC Wimbledon.
Cambridge are fifth on 13 points, while Wimbledon sit eighth on 12. Both clubs remain in the early promotion picture.
Ings makes an instant impact
Debutant Danny Ings finished from close range to secure Wycombe Wanderers a 2-2 draw against Reading.
Wycombe are mid-table on 10 points. Reading have 11.
Salford find their momentum
Salford City produced the clearest statement in the late League Two kick-off, winning 4-1 at Oldham Athletic.
Luke Molyneux scored inside five minutes before Kelly N’Mai chipped in a second. Calum Kavanagh pulled one back for Oldham, but Brendan Wiredu restored Salford’s two-goal lead. Substitute Adebola Oluwo headed a late fourth from Luke Garbutt’s free-kick.
It was Oldham’s fourth straight league defeat.
“We are here to get promoted. It’s simple, that is what we want to do.”
Brendan Wiredu
Salford’s win moved them onto 13 points. Molyneux said the team’s early-season difficulties were beginning to turn into momentum.
Cheltenham move second
Charlie McCann and Andi Weimann scored as Cheltenham Town beat Chesterfield 2-1.
The result moved Cheltenham into second place on 15 points.
York continue their start
York City beat Gillingham 3-0 and moved above them into fourth.
Gillingham were reduced to 10 men, while York continued a strong opening to the campaign.
Other League Two decisions
- Bristol Rovers beat Exeter City 1-0 through Fabrizio Cavegn’s solitary goal, setting a club record for consecutive home wins.
- Exeter remain just above the relegation zone and have scored only four league goals all season.
- Newport County ended Grimsby Town’s unbeaten league run with a 2-1 win.
- Walsall fought back to draw 1-1 with Tranmere Rovers and were indebted to goalkeeper Jed Ward.
- Rochdale moved up to 16th after winning 2-1 at Fleetwood Town.
- Shrewsbury Town and Colchester United drew 2-2.
- Swindon Town and Accrington Stanley drew 1-1.
- Crewe Alexandra drew 1-1 with Rotherham United and remain unbeaten after eight matches.
Table and form notes
League One
- Bradford City: 15 points from 7 matches
- Sheffield Wednesday: 14 points from 7 matches
- Stockport County: 13 points from 8 matches
- Plymouth Argyle: 13 points from 8 matches
- Cambridge United: 13 points from 8 matches
- Huddersfield Town: 12 points from 7 matches
- Burton Albion: 12 points from 8 matches
- AFC Wimbledon: 12 points from 8 matches
- Reading: 11 points from 7 matches
- Oxford United: 11 points from 6 matches
Bradford City did not play but remain top on goal difference from Sheffield Wednesday.
At the bottom, Peterborough United have five points from eight matches. Wigan Athletic have four points from seven.
League Two
- Barnet: 15 points from 7 matches
- Cheltenham Town: 15 points from 8 matches
- Bristol Rovers: 15 points from 8 matches
- York City: 14 points from 8 matches
- Walsall: 14 points from 8 matches, unbeaten
- Grimsby Town: 13 points from 8 matches
- Salford City: 13 points from 8 matches
- Gillingham: 12 points from 8 matches
- Crewe Alexandra: 12 points from 8 matches, unbeaten
Oldham Athletic are 20th on seven points after four straight defeats. Exeter City have six points, while Northampton Town have six from seven matches. Port Vale have five and Crawley Town have four.
Premier League and Championship
The Premier League table remains unchanged during the international break. Manchester City lead on 15 points from five wins, followed by Arsenal on 12 and Brighton & Hove Albion on 10.
Erling Haaland leads the scoring with five goals. Alexander Isak has four.
In the Championship, Swansea City lead on 17 points. West Ham United and Middlesbrough both have 15. Cyle Larin of Southampton is the division’s leading scorer with seven.
Fantasy desk
FPL Gameweek 6 begins on Saturday 10 October, with the deadline at 11:00 BST. Managers have had two blank weekends during the extended international break, making late team news especially important.
Gameweek 6 fixtures
- 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, with 47 points and 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 per cent ownership include Tyrick Mitchell, Mohamed Belloumi, Charalampos Kostoulas, Luka Vuskovic and Harvey Barnes.
Haaland remains the leading captaincy option for managers protecting rank, despite Manchester City’s trip to Liverpool. Groß is the popular differential captain after Brighton’s home match with Sunderland. Isak is being treated as a hold rather than a buy.
Injury watch
- Alexander Isak returned to Liverpool with an injury from international duty.
- Kai Havertz is out with a hamstring injury picked up while playing for Germany.
- Brian Brobbey suffered a hamstring injury on international duty with Sunderland after his 17-point Gameweek 5.
- Cole Palmer withdrew from the England squad.
- Joao Pedro also withdrew from the Brazil squad for Chelsea.
- Benjamin Sesko and Marcus Rashford carry knocks at Manchester United.
- Anthony Elanga has no return date at Newcastle and is being sold.
- Kaoru Mitoma, William Saliba and Joelinton remain among the players to monitor.
Several Brighton and Newcastle assets are rising in price, including Groß, Schade, Kostoulas, Maxim De Cuyper and Hall.
The simple rule for the break is to check team news and flags immediately before the 11:00 deadline on 10 October. The official Premier League fixture list remains the starting point for the schedule.
Manager’s view
This was a weekend about different types of pressure.
Plymouth had the chance to go top and missed it. Stockport took a narrow win against a managerless opponent. Oldham’s run reached four defeats, while Salford’s promotion ambition became clearer. Crewe and Walsall kept their unbeaten records through draws rather than statement wins.
For managers, the next decision is rarely isolated. A result changes confidence, a postponement alters the calendar, and an injury can reshape an entire squad plan. The same applies to transfers, contracts, tactics, finances, scouting and youth development.
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