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Written by Harry Clark in association with FPL Updates

International Break Injuries

International breaks provide nothing but stress for fantasy managers and Premier League managers alike. The fortnight of no Premier League football is just 180 minutes of time where players can pick up injuries and ruin all our hard-work spent meticulously planning our teams. Here is each key injury that occurred over the break and how you and their respective clubs will be affected.

Players who picked up injuries over the break

Marouane Fellaini

The first nugget of bad news was delivered by Belgium manager Roberto Martinez. He had the fantastic job of telling Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho that midfielder Marouane Fellaini is facing at least two to three weeks on the sidelines after spraining his Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL).

It was inittially feared that the Belgian would be out for much longer but Fellaini avoided a long-term lay-off following positive results on a knee scan. Belgium had already secured qualification for the World Cup, but Martinez decided to field a strong side. This backfired on the Spaniard as Fellaini was forced to come off after just 29 minutes.

So what does this mean for fantasy managers?

Fellaini had only just grabbed a place in Mourinho’s starting eleven due to the injury of Paul Pogba. He scored a brace in their 4-0 home victory against Crystal Palace, which ignited a bandwagon of FPL managers bringing the big Belgian into their squads.

In total, over 100,000 managers brought him in before the injury which could rule him out for the rest of the month.

Some people will miss Fellaini more than others.

N’Golo Kante

Another casualty of the international break was last year’s Player of the Season, N’Golo Kanté. The Frenchman came off in France’s World Cup qualifier against Bulgaria in the 34th minute.

His hamstring seemed to be the cause of his early withdrawal but the extent of the injury is still unknown. He missed France’s second qualifier of the break against Belarus.

If the injury is bad enough to keep the Ballon d’Or nominated midfielder out of action for a few weeks, then it will be a big blow for Chelsea and their title aspirations. To emphasise his quality, Kanté has won more tackles than any other Premier League player in 2017.

If the injury is bad enough to keep the Ballon d’Or nominated midfielder out of action for a few weeks, then it will be a big blow for Chelsea and their title aspirations. To emphasise his quality, Kanté has won more tackles than any other Premier League player in 2017.

Kante’s likely absence from the lineup against Crystal Palace on Saturday means Cesc Fabregas and summer signing Tiémouié Bakayoko will more than likely make up the midfield in the absence of Kanté for the game against Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Shkodran Mustafi

Speaking of back lines, Arsenal’s has severely been damaged with the injury of their German centre back Shkodran Mustafi who came off in Germany’s 5-1 thumping of Azerbaijan. Like Fellaini, he could be facing ligament damage but there is confusion as to whether he has hurt his thigh or hamstring.

Germany manager Joachim Low has said that he could be facing a long break and has already been ruled out of Arsenal’s away fixture at Watford. So who will be in Arsène Wenger’s defence moving forward, and more importantly this weekend at Watford.

Nacho Monreal will certainly have a spot considering his recent performances in an Arsenal shirt. Laurent Koscielny and Calum Chambers are also struggling with injuries and are doubts for Watford. Rob Holding would be next in the pecking order, and could prove to be a huge bargain if selected. The final place in the back three will more than likely be filled by the ‘BFG’ Per Mertesacker unless Sead Kolasinac is dropped back to help, however he was withdrawn at half-time for Bosnia and Herzegovina against Estonia.

READ MORE: How will a missing Mane affect your fantasy team?

Sadio Mane

Sadio Mane has only recently come back from a three match ban for his sending off against Man City. However, he will be spending more time in the stands with a hamstring injury which he suffered in Senegal’s World Cup qualification win over Cape Verde.

Mane was taken off three minutes from time with the injury and is expected to be sidelined for up to six weeks. This untimely injury comes just a day after Mane was nominated for the Ballon d’Or alongside Kanté.

Liverpool do seem to suffer without the Senegalese in their team. Last season, Mane went off to the African Cup of Nations which coincided with the Reds form significantly dropping. In the three matches he missed this season, Liverpool won and lost against Leicester and drew with Burnley. Phillipe Coutinho may push further forward which could allow either Emre Can or Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain a place in Jurgen Klopp’s starting eleven.

Liverpool’s ‘Fab Four’ are yet to play a full game together this season and it’s no surprise considering their injury history.