FPL GW1 Scout Notes: Southampton, Barnes, Norwich Under the Lens

In this FPL Eye Test and scout notes blog, Stevie @eyetestfpl will be assessing Southampton, Barnes and the Norwich defence from their performance in FPL GW1.

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FPL GW1 Scout Notes:

EVERTON 3-1 SOUTHAMPTON

In this match, Benitez’s Everton set up in the usual 4-2-3-1 formation with Richarlison on the left, Gray on the center, and Townsend on the right.

Everton found it difficult to find an opening through Southampton’s tight 4-4-2 defensive shape in the 1^st half as Gray was relatively ineffective in the no 10 role.

During pre-season, Ralph Hassenhuttl has mentioned that the team has been working on improving the defensive side of things and everything was going well until Everton’s equalizer a few minutes into the 2^nd half.

For Everton’s 1^st goal, Mohammed Salisu, a fairly inexperienced player at only 22 years of age, was hesitant in dealing with Richarlison’s threat and ultimately responsible for allowing him free to tap it home.

Afterwards, things went further south for Southampton. Arguably, the biggest weak link in this youthful backline lies in the left-back position filled in by the new signing, Romain Perraud, which is highlighted by the fact that half of the chances conceded by Southampton came from his side.

There was clearly a lack of leadership within the backline and a big gap was constantly opening up in the half-space area between Salisu and Perraud.

For Everton’s 2^nd goal, Iwobi moved in to attack the space, assisting Doucoure in the process.

The same thing also happened during the build-up to Everton’s 3^rd goal with Richarlison now exploiting the same half-space.

Some credits have to be given to Benitez who made a tactical shift halfway into the 2^nd half by bringing in Iwobi and playing Richarlison in the center where he proved to be most effective.

As Southampton tried to claw their way back into the game, Perraud was immediately replaced as Ralph Hassenhuttl brought on Nathan Redmond to go on the offensive.

The problematic left-back area bodes well for Greenwood owners in GW2 as Southampton entertain Manchester United.

He played out-of-position as the lone striker against Leeds in GW1 which was perhaps not suited to his biggest strength – running at defenders. So, there is a chance Greenwood may play as the right-winger and potentially terrorize Perraud again.

Further Read: FPL Gameweek 2: Three Fixtures to target for FPL Points

LEICESTER 1-0 WOLVES

Contrary to the early narrative, Bruno Lage decided to approach this game more conservatively by setting up in a 5-3-2 low block defensively.

This made it harder for Leicester to find openings through the middle especially with the static midfield of Tielemans, Maddison and Ndidi.

In this situation, once Perez passed the ball to Pereira, Moutinho quickly blocked the next passing route to Tielemans who was clearly the most progressive passer in the side. By shutting off Tielemans, Wolves have arguably killed off half of Leicester’s distribution.

Perhaps since this was only the first game of the season, Rodgers might see this as an opportunity to ease his players into the new season. But the early signs of Leicester attack was concerning indeed for all Harvey Barnes owners.

Only in the 2^nd half, when Wolves were chasing for an equaliser and started to go on the offensive, things got slightly better for Barnes as Rodgers switched to a 3-5-2 and played Barnes up top with Vardy. Barnes’ biggest moment of the game came when he saw more space in front of him.

But in this 3-5-2 system, Iheanacho is a better fit than Barnes to partner Vardy. Not long after the tactical switch, the inevitable happened as Barnes was replaced by Iheanacho.

With Iheanacho waiting on the bench, there is flexibility for Rodgers to switch his formations around according to the developing demands of the game, making Barnes a slight rotation risk.

In GW2, Leicester will face West Ham United who are also adept at sitting deep and frustrating opponents with their back 5 system.

Barnes remains a good option but perhaps if you decide to go for him, the best course of action is to wait until at least GW3 when he will face Norwich.

Further Read: FPL Gameweek 2: Three Fixtures to target for FPL Points

NORWICH 0-3 LIVERPOOL

There was an element of excitement regarding Norwich as Daniel Farke employed an aggressive playing style, often committing men forward. But the result was as expected as Salah hauled big with one goal and two assists.

Although Jota also scored in this match, perhaps it came a little fortuitously as Salah took a heavy touch from a TAA’s cross which inadvertently fell onto Jota’s path.

His overall contribution as the false 9 was poor as he made only 6 touches in the first 30 minutes of the match.

There is a significant doubt regarding Jota’s minutes now as he was subbed off for Firmino in the 60^th minute. As soon as Firmino was on the pitch, Liverpool also seemed to exert more control on the match and keep hold of the ball better. To top it off, he also scored a goal which raises a greater concern for Jota’s owners.

During defensive phase, Norwich shifted into a narrow 4-5-1 which gave both Liverpool’s full-backs, TAA and Tsimikas, lots of space. In particular, Tsimikas made lots of crosses from the left-hand side.

There is a slight element of uncertainty surrounding Tsimikas too. Although offensively he provided sufficient support for Sadio Mane, defensively he did not look convincing and was at times too casual on the ball, losing it a couple of times.

In GW2, Manchester City will face Norwich and such a huge space down the flanks can be exploited by the likes of Mahrez and Cancelo. If he plays, Cancelo has the potential to explode as Mahrez cutting inside will give him more space down the flank.

It will always be futile to try guessing Pep’s selection as he might see this match as a good opportunity to possibly give minutes to those players who just came back from the Euros.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to drop some comments down below 🙂

Further Reads from ALLABOUTFPL Ahead of FPL GW2:

FPL Gameweek 2: Three Fixtures to target for FPL Points

Also check out our Rules and Basics Guide, FPL Chip Strategy, FPL Chips, FPL Team reveals, FPL History, team reveals, FPL Tools here.

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