World Cup qualifiers: Everything you need to know about Manchester United players on international duty
Another international break called for a recap podcast from Stretty News editor Dale O'Donnell - available on Spotify, Acast, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
November’s internationals are upon us and there will be Manchester United players hoping to push closer to qualifying for next year’s World Cup in Qatar.
Qualifying fixtures will be taking place across Africa, Europe and South America over the next two weeks, starting tonight, so here’s a full look at when you will be able to watch our players represent their countries in the final international break of 2021.
There was quite a bit I wanted to get off my chest on this week’s episode of the Strettycast, with the internationals coming up and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s position in jeopardy.
I focus on the Manchester derby which was yet another sign that things aren’t right at United. The 5-0 defeat to Liverpool now feels like a trend and that is totally unacceptable.
Yet again, I’m starting to feel there is a degree of incompetence from the Glazers (surprise, surprise!) as they’ve decided to prolong the situation when it’s only headed in one direction.
We know the owners have no plan or strategy when it comes to football – despite talk about restructuring Manchester United in recent years – so it really comes as no surprise. They are businessmen who want nothing more than to drain their commercial cash cow in Manchester.
The only team news we have is Paul Pogba will be out for a few months after sustaining an injury to his groin in France training. You can see from the clip below (via RMC Sport) that it’s a muscle injury picked up from attempting a drill in shooting practice.
I’m not going to argue that he will be a loss to the team, but I don’t know about the Frenchman anymore. Does he want to stay? Has he ever cared since returning to the club in 2016? They (I include Mino Raiola) are dancing around the contract and further refusal to sign it before Christmas would be the final nail in the coffin – unless United make him the richest player in the Premier League… something Pogba doesn’t deserve by any stretch of the imagination.
Keep an eye on the Reds during the internationals (…in fear that none of them sustain any injuries!)
England
United initially had three players called up to Gareth Southgate’s England squad but Marcus Rashford will remain at Carrington to recover from a recent illness. He also needs more time to fully recover from the shoulder operation which he had after Euro 2020, so some time away from England can only be a good thing.
Luke Shaw is still with the squad, but it is unknown whether the left-back will be available for the next two matches after sustaining a head injury in the Manchester derby on Saturday.
If Shaw passes fit to play, he will join Harry Maguire knowing four points from matches against Albania and San Marino will be enough to send the Three Lions to the World Cup. England take on Albania on 12 November and San Marino on 15 November.
On form, I can’t help but thing Shaw and Maguire are lucky to get call ups this time around. Jadon Sancho and Jesse Lingard were snubbed of their places due to a lack of game time.
Portugal
United trio Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot were all called up to the Portugal squad for two crucial qualifiers against Ireland and Serbia. The first match is tonight at 19:45 against the Irish, who Ronaldo scored twice against last time out, and then they take on Serbia on 14 November.
Spain
David de Gea is part of Luis Enrique’s squad but it remains to be seen whether he will be thrown back in goal. He was overlooked by the Spain manager during the summer at Euro 2020, although the shot stopper has rediscovered some of his best form for United. The Spaniard’s trail Sweden at the top of Group B by just two points, so we could be in for a winner-takes-all match between the two nations.
Sweden
That brings us to the Swedes, captained by Victor Lindelof, who could lead his nation to securing top spot in the group with a win over Georgia on Thursday but only if Spain fail to win. They might still need to avoid defeat against Spain three days later if things don’t quite go to plan.
Ivory Coast
Eric Bailly doesn’t feature often for United, but he is a mainstay when it comes to Ivory Coast. However, there was no call up this time around for Amad Diallo, who continues to work his way back to full fitness with the U23s. The Elephants face Mozambique next Saturday, before playing Cameroon three days later with one point currently separating the two sides.
Scotland
Having experienced his first goal on the international stage during the last international break, Scott McTominay will be looking forward to representing the Tartan Army again.
Scotland will be looking to secure Group F’s play-off spot with two matches left to play. First up is a trip to Moldova on Friday, before group winners Denmark stand in their way at Hampden Park the following Monday.
Fixture list
Thursday 11 November
Georgia v Sweden (17:00 GMT)
Ireland v Portugal (19:45 GMT)
Greece v Spain (19:45 GMT)
Friday 12 November
Brazil v Colombia (00:03 GMT)
Moldova v Scotland (17:00 GMT)
England v Albania (19:45 GMT)
Saturday 13 November
Ivory Coast v Mozambique (19:00 GMT)
Sunday 14 November
Spain v Sweden (19:45)
Portugal v Serbia (19:45)
Monday 15 November
San Marino v England (19:45 GMT)
Scotland v Denmark (19:45 GMT)
Tuesday 16 November
Cameroon v Ivory Coast (19:00 GMT)
Argentina v Brazil (22:30 GMT)