TOTW 9 Predictions

After a few decent scores in terms of predicting we head into the international week, which usually throws a fair few surprises. In terms of predicting however it looks to be a strong side with the likes of Mbappe, Lewandowski, Kane and Reus all looking likely for an inclusion into TOTW 9. Not to mention a potential silver star Hincapie
 

Goalkeeper

Emiliano Martinez – GK - OVR 84>>86
Although there was a fair few obvious selections this week the defensive side of the side is beyond difficult to select. Martinez looks to be one of the strongest gold options between the sticks after making a total of four saves to keep a clean sheet during Argentina’s 1-0 win over Uruguay.

Defenders

Joakim Maehle – LWB - OVR 77>>81
Despite Denmark conceding their first goal of the qualification process I can still see Maehle, who scored a late goal to confirm all three points against Faroe Island getting the nod. Denmark have arguably been the most convincing side in qualification so far, winning all nine of their matches alongside scoring 30 and conceding just once.

Ben Davies – CB - OVR 79>>82
Wales ran away with a 5-1 home win over Belarus and although Ramsey looks to be a strong shout with two goals, I am opting for a different route due to the lack of defensive options available to us. Davies scored one of those five goals and although is slightly hindered by the goal conceded with myself struggling for defensive options it is likely that EA will also and thus increasing the chance that Davies makes the cut.

Jose Gaya – LB - OVR 83>>85
The only non-goalscoring defender I have included this week is Gaya, Spain kept two clean sheets over the course of the week with Gaya being named MOTM in the first, a 1-0 win over Greece. He is also the only high rated defender of the week which I feel helps him stand out over other options.

Midfielders

Marco Reus – CAM - OVR 85>>86
One of the hardest decisions of the week came with what German plyer to include with Reus, Sane, Muller, Gundogan and Hofmann all being realistic options for the side. Although it is likely to be pot luck as to who is included from that list Reus is my favourite for the nod. Coming from Germany’s 9-0 win the Dortmund midfielder scored once and assisted another three.

Lucas Paqueta – CM - OVR 81>>84
Brazil have dominated qualification for the World Cup, currently unbeaten from twelve, eleven of which they have won. Paqueta scored the only goal of the match during their 1-0 win over Colombia on Friday and although it is just the one goal with it being an international week and this being a strong fixture, I feel that he will scrape in.

Enis Bardhi – CM - OVR 79>>84
With both a positional change and a potential featured TOTW, Bardhi would become a very strong option for those La Liga sides. He gets the nod after another impressive performance from North Macedonia saw them beat Armenia 5-0 away from home. Bardhi scored three of those five and although two were from the spot he is still practically guaranteed a spot here..

Ismaila Sarr – RM - OVR 78>>84
As a whole the African qualifiers offered very little in terms of selection, Sarr however was one of the few who now looks nailed on for TOTW 9. The Senegalese midfielder scored both their goals as they confirmed World Cup qualification with a 2-0 home win over Congo.

Forwards

Harry Kane – ST – OVR 90>>91
England remain undefeated for the group stage after a convincing 5-0 win over Albania who deployed offensive tactics from the get go which ended up playing into England’s strengths. All the damage was supplied during the first half with all five of the goals coming before the break. Kane scored three of the five and also provided an assist, making him an easy choice for a spot in TOTW 9

Robert Lewandowski – ST - OVR 92>>93
Lewandowski has been snubbed on a couple of occasions this FIFA already but with big names starting to pick up IF’s I can’t see him being snubbed again this week. The Polish international was only playing against Andorra but with two goals and one assist he was one of the best options on paper, not to mention that it was also a result which secures a spot in the play offs.

Kylian Mbappe – ST – OVR 91>>92
Ending the highest rated front three we will likely see all year is Mbappe. France ran riot while hosting Kazakhstan, hitting eight without reply. Mbappe is the obvious choice for TOTW despite multiple brilliant performances thanks to four goals and one assist.

Substitutes

Silvan Widmer – RB - OVR 75>>81
With defenders being few and far between most who scored will find themselves featured in the upcoming side. Annoyingly both Italian and Swiss goals were scored by their retrospective RB’s in a 1-1 draw. I feel as though the result is bigger for Switzerland however and thus I have opted to give them the IF.

Said Benrahma – CAM - OVR 77>>81
Benrahma has played an important role in West Hams current success this season, providing a constant threat in the middle of the park for them. The Algerian continued his form over to international level with both a goal and an assist against Djibouti on Friday night.

Lovro Majer – RW - OVR 76>>81
Majer had a chance of making the side last week and likewise he is in the running for this one. Croatia recorded a 7-1 win after travelling to Malta from which several IF candidates occurred. Both Majer and Kramaric look to be the favourites but with the former recently being awarded an IF I feel as though Majer is the safe bet here.

Dominik Szoboszlai – LW- OVR 77>>81
I would have opted for the featured upgrade on Szoboszlai had he played centrally but unfortunately with a wide position being played for his national side in terms of FIFA his card is significantly worse for the meta. Regardless of his position however he walks into the side after scoring two of Hungary’s four at home to San Marino.

Ondrej Duda – CM - OVR 75>>81
Slovakia was another side who recorded a big win, travelling to Malta and scoring six without reply. Once again there were several options for TOTW but as to who will end up getting the nod it's pretty obvious with Duda scoring three and assisting another from CM.

Burak Yilmaz – ST - OVR 81>>84
Whoever plays Gibraltar during an international break usually picks up an IF and this week is no different with Turkey running away with a 6-0 win. The IF choice is far from obvious but with Yilmaz picking up three assists alongside being the main gold to perform, I would expect it to go his way.

Christian Benteke – ST - OVR 75>>81
It’s been a long time since Benteke was scoring week in week out but despite his lack of goals in recent years Belgium still decided to deploy him as the lone striker this weekend. He repaid their faith with both a goal and an assist as they recorded a 3-1 home win over Estonia.

Reserves

Elias Rafn Olafsson – GK - OVR 58>>68
There are two keepers with a strong shout for this position with both OIafsson and Bass having brilliant performances between the sticks. Realistically only one can make it though. EA have liked to include a lot of silver options in their sides so far this season and with a limited amount available for selection due to the international break I feel that Olafsson will get preference due to being a silver option. The Icelandic keeper made a total of seven saves to keep his clean sheet during Iceland’s 0-0 draw with Romania.

Nathan Patterson – RWB - OVR 66>>75
It’s been an impressive qualification for Scotland who confirmed their place in the play offs this week thanks to a 2-0 away win over Moldova, beating the likes of Austria and Israel to the second qualification spot. Patterson was involved in both goals from the RWB position with both a goal and an assist. Despite being a silver defender, I can still see EA opting for him over other options.

Scott Twine – ST - OVR 65>>75
It wouldn’t be an international week without an ELL inclusion into TOTW. It’s often the case that they get one for less than a hat trick with less competition but it was not even a difficult decision for me this week with Twine scoring twice and assisting another two for MK Dons, as they beat Cambridge 4-1.

Fashion Sakala– ST - OVR 73>>79
I called the Sakala snub a couple of weeks ago despite a hat trick being scored for Rangers. This time however the Sakala IF is inevitable after the Zambian forward has once again scored three times, this time at international level. Zambia maintain the chase on group leaders Tunisia thanks to a 4-0 home win with Sakala proving his quality once again.

Gerson Rodrigues – ST - OVR 72>>79
Although they have failed to qualify for the World Cup there are still a lot of positives to take from this campaign for Luxembourg. Often the whipping boys of the group stage, they currently sit in 3rd, above both Azerbaijan and Ireland. Their latest result saw them come away with a 3-1 away win over Azerbaijan, with Rodrigues being involved in all three of said goals. Scoring twice and assisting the other.