To the annoyance of many, the first international break of the season is here, with many of the Premier League’s best now jetting across the globe to reunite with their national teams for the final block of fixtures before the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
For the likes of England, France and Spain, the UEFA National League will provide strong international competition and one final test to decide on which players will head to Qatar this winter, whereas for Brazil, the United States and Senegal, big-name friendlies will also help coaches identify those who will be on the plane to the Middle East come November.
Some Premier League players head into this international break already knowing they will be heading out to Qatar, such as England captain Harry Kane, Belgium maestro Kevin De Bruyne, and France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, however, for some, their World Cup hopes lay on what happens this month.
Many interesting names will have their fates decided in the coming weeks, and here are five Premier League players to keep an eye on this month ahead of the final international break before the World Cup in Qatar.
Eric Dier
Eric Dier’s redemption arch under Antonio Conte has been quite the spectacle for Tottenham supporters, and Gareth Southgate has finally noticed the defender’s form over the past 12 months with the versatile centre-back this week selected for England’s international fixtures against Germany and Italy.
With Harry Maguire out of form and Southgate seemingly set to try a flat-back-four system again, Dier could well feature for the Three Lions against their European rivals, and the Tottenham star will no doubt be an interesting player to watch this month on the international stage.
William Saliba
From one north London defender to another, and the buzz surrounding Arsenal centre-back William Saliba is seemingly growing by the day, with many tipping the 21-year-old to make France’s World Cup squad, including Brentford manager Thomas Frank.
A £27m signing for the Gunners back in 2019, Saliba has arguably been one of the best defenders in the Premier League this season, and with Didier Deschamps’ a big fan of the French youngster, the Arsenal wonderkid will likely feature for Les Bleus against Austria and Denmark this month in their final pre-World Cup fixtures.
Moises Caicedo
As things stand, Ecuador are set to compete in the World Cup and star in the opening fixture of the competition against hosts Qatar, and for Brighton & Hove Albion, the tournament could be the one where they lose another star player in Moises Caicedo, who is set to start for the South American nation.
With friendlies against Saudi Arabia and Japan booked in for this month, the coming days will be Caicedo’s last chance to really solidify his spot for Ecuador ahead of the World Cup, where the midfielder could be one of the breakout players of the tournament if he is able to guide La Tri to the knockout stages.
Brenden Aaronson
Jesse Marsch’s American revolution of Leeds United has been quite impressive, to say the least, and Brenden Aaronson has quickly established himself as one of the Yorkshire side’s most exciting talents, with Owen Hargreaves labelling the attacking midfielder as a ‘fantastic’ player, and yet, his World Cup future isn’t 100% set in stone.
Whilst Aaronson is part of the largely MLS-heavy squad for the USMNT this international break, the Leeds star will be competing with national team captain Christian Pulisic and other big-name players such as Giovanni Reyna and Malik Tillman for a starting spot, making the Premier League star one to watch this international break,
Ivan Toney
Just like with Dier, it’s taken Southgate quite some time to reward Ivan Toney for his form in the Premier League, yet the Brentford striker has finally got what he deserves after an outstanding start to the new English season, with the striker set feature for England against Germany and Italy.
A similar yet effective alternative to Harry Kane, Toney could win a spot to Qatar if the attacker can impress for the Three Lions this month, and based on the striker’s penalty record, taking the Northampton-born to the World Cup anyway might seem like a smart move from Southgate should England find themselves in such a situation again.
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