🤔 What happened over the break? 🌏

Summary for the lazy

👋 Antonio Conte leaves Spurs

😍 Double Gameweek 34 confirmed🤕 Erling Haaland is "touch and go" for Gameweek 29, according to his Dad

🤦‍♂️ Marcus Rashford returns to "light training"

Pause for a second. Can you hear that? It's subtle. Little more than a fart in the wind.

It's the sound of FPL managers slowly coming out of a 10-day hibernation, weary-eyed and wobbly, trying to remember which of their seven different password variations is the one that grants them access to their injury-strewn fantasy teams (yup, it's the one with the exclamation mark at the end).

International breaks are usually dull, but this one has somehow managed to be dull and rather inconvenient for managers. A rare combination indeed.

It feels like those ambiguous international break injuries have been reserved exclusively for players who are more than 30% owned. Haaland, Rashford, Pope, Havertz, Botman...here's a meme from our Twitter account that sums it up nicely.

Double Gameweek 34 confirmed

Another Double Gameweek has been confirmed. You know those teams that blanked last gameweek? Well, they're all doubling in Double Gameweek 34.

In case you, like me, are unable to remember anything that happened prior to the international break, that means Brighton, Fulham, Liverpool, Man City, Man United and West Ham will all double in Gameweek 34.

Here's the latest from @BenCrellin:

What does this new double mean for your chip strategy?

I asked this exact question to the Professor this morning. His response?

...a man of many words.

It appears that not much has changed as far as the conventional wisdom is concerned. Some are flirting with a Bench Boost in Double Gameweek 34, but it's the sort of harmless flirting you do with elderly supermarket workers when you're already in a committed relationship.

Conte is Gone...te

After a sensational post-match rant, Antonio Conte has left Spurs. The draw with Southampton, having been two goals up, was apparently the straw that broke the cockerel's back.

That means the introduction of the fabled interim manager, an all-too-familiar cornerstone of this new age of managerial merry-go-rounds. The man that Spurs have chosen to sip from the poison chalice is Cristian Stellini, a role he has already-sort-of-done due to Conte's gippy gall bladder.

He'll be in charge until the end of the season.

The impact on your Spurs players remains to be seen, but if there is an opportunity, it could be in Heung-min Son. The Korean has been a shadow of his former self, scoring just six goals this season. Could he, under new management, return to the sort of form that saw him score 23 goals and notch 10 assists last season?

One to keep an eye on, perhaps.

International "knocks"

Every international break a few players will pick up mysterious, undefined injuries. We call them "international knocks" around these parts.

Usually - and somewhat cruelly for FPL managers - the players in question are talismanic for their clubs, which makes it hard not to suspect that these international knocks could, in fact, just be the club's attempt at protecting their star men.

But let's carefully remove the tin-hat for a second and examine the injury-threat to two players you either own now or are planning to own in the next few gameweeks: Erling Haaland and Marcus Rashford.

Haaland's injury

He was sent away from the Norwegian camp for a scan due to a groin issue. The scan revealed a slight problem, and the Norse God - previously thought to be impervious to injury - returned home.

Whilst the injury has been reported as minor, his Dad has since come out and said he's "touch and go" to start in Double Gameweek 29. And Dad's never lie.

@BenDinnery has also played down the suggestion that this is the work of Guardiola, insisting it's likely Haaland actually has something up.

Lazy verdict: a genuine doubt for a Double Gameweek 29 start.

Rashford's injury

Rashford is back in light training following his toe injury and a perplexingly controversial trip to New York but, according to Man United's website, there was "no ball work" involved. Presumably they're referring to a football there.

Dinnery has said in a recent round-up video that, assuming Rashford comes through those sessions unscathed, he should be in contention for Double Gameweek 29.

Lazy verdict: definitely don't get rid unless you hear something definitive.

Other injuries to note:Phil Foden (appendix, 5-6 weeks)Emerson Royal (knee, 5-6 weeks) Kai Havertz (illness, should be in contention)Sven Botman (had a dodgy curry, should be fine)Nick Pope (minor issue, should be fine)

Other tidbits

Pervis Estupinan took a penalty for Ecuador and scored it.

Kauru Mitoma continued his good form for Japan, scoring against Colombia.

Scott McTominay scored a brace against Spain and is therefore essential for your Gameweek 29 teams 😉

Luke Shaw was red carded in the first of England's two European Qualifiers, meaning he'll be well rested for Gameweek 29. However, injuries to Sabitzer and Casemiro mean United might not be as defensively robust as usual.

Okay, we're out, but we'll be back in two days ahead of big-bastard Double Gameweek 29. Do try not to miss us too much.

Stay lazy,The LazyFPL team.