Which Premier League Clubs Needed the International Break Most?
International breaks are an inconvenience—a necessary one, but an inconvenience nonetheless.
Breaking the rhythm of domestic and European club competition, if only they happened all at once, in a 13th month we invented for the sole purpose of international qualification. Allow the dream.
Digressing slightly, though bothersome for invested supporters and neutral onlookers, international breaks can have positive effects. The Premier League is an intense marathon, and the occasional layoffs often provide managers and select players an opportunity to find their bearings, rest and/or recover from injury.
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However annoying the EPL table's jumbled fixture list may be (with teams having seven, eight or nine fixtures remaining), the league has taken shape.
Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur are the title contenders. Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and West Ham United are competing for the remaining European places. At the other end, Newcastle United, Sunderland and Norwich City are attempting to avoid joining Aston Villa in relegation. Everyone else can be classed as mid-table.
Patiently waiting for April 2's restart, it seems worth investigating which clubs from each stratum will gain the most from this halt in Premier League action.
Title Contenders
When compared to Tottenham, Leicester have a slight advantage. Spurs sent 12 players on international duty, while the Foxes sent 10.
In an ideal world, Claudio Ranieri would have kept his squad at the King Power Stadium covered in bubble wrap, but his club's fantastic season means the countries of his players have come calling.
On the other hand, playing for your country should spark confidence.
N'Golo Kante, for instance, has not played a single minute for France but will return from his debut international call-up feeling better about his professional career than ever—hopefully enough, in Ranieri's mind, to cross the proverbial finish line.
Top-Four Challengers
West Ham only had six players called up, but the quality of their six is massive.
Not discounting the contributions Victor Moses, Cheikhou Kouyate and Enner Valencia have made to Slaven Bilic's side, Dimitri Payet's appearance in France's national team is crucial. Already suffering serious injury this season, the Hammers would have been better off keeping their talisman at Upton Park, but the 28-year-old's place was warranted.
When looking for the top-four contending club in most need of the international break, it must be Manchester United. Having upwards of 14 days to possibly recover Wayne Rooney, Ashley Young, Phil Jones, Ander Herrera and Cameron Borthwick-Jackson before their next match against Everton on April 3, options are returning for Louis van Gaal.
Their 1-0 victory against Manchester City has closed the gap in the race for fourth place to one point. With the Citizens in a relative free fall, United's resurrected bodies are invaluable.
Mid-Table Dwellers
Liverpool have two games in hand on some teams, including Southampton and Stoke, who sit directly above the Merseysiders.
Jurgen Klopp has 16 players on international duty—the most of any Premier League club—but supposing they return healthy, the season's final push has the Reds' perfectly situated.
Still working with Brendan Rodgers' players, the German manager is slowly creating his squad ethos in the Anfield dressing room.
Having the international break to scout and develop gameplays for the upcoming matches, no mid-table manager has more to play for than Klopp. Furthermore, the hiatus seems a decent distraction from their collapse at St. Mary's Stadium, where they fell to Southampton despite taking a 2-0 lead.
Relegation Battlers
Similar to Manchester United, Newcastle United have options coming back once April arrives—Fabricio Coloccini, Cheick Tiote, Kevin Mbabu, Massadio Haidara and Gabriel Obertan are scheduled to return against Norwich. Unlike the Red Devils, however, the Magpies are working under new management.
Heading into one of the season's biggest matches, newly hired manager Rafa Benitez (after a dramatic point in the Tyne-Wear derby) can properly implement his style and learn more about the pieces at his disposal.
Just seven Newcastle players were called up for international duty—only Aston Villa, Sunderland and West Ham had fewer.
The chances for Benitez to further integrate his tactics with a large portion of his squad seems a considerable advantage before what might be the most important eight-game stretch in Newcastle's Premier League history.
*Stats via WhoScored.com; transfer fees via Soccerbase where not noted.
