Niclas Füllkrug had a rare off day, firing a blank as his Werder Bremen side lost 1-0 to VfB Stuttgart in the Bundesliga. This was the first game since matchday one in which Füllkrug hadn't scored. His record of 12 goals in 11 games in all competitions this season has been enough to get him called up by Germany's squad again.
Füllkrug has not played for Germany since June of last year. He is expected to have a key role in Jurgen Klopp's side, as the only other strikers in his squad are Kai Havertz and Younes Ebnoutaalib. The Germans play Serbia and the Netherlands during this international break.
Werder is still to open talks with West Ham United about making Füllkrug's loan move permanent. The Bundesliga side's managing director, Clemens Fritz, recently told Sky Sport (translated from German), "The next step is to enter into dialogue with West Ham. We will, of course, hold talks about this. Ultimately, we also have to see what the financial package looks like."
Jean Clair-Todibo returned to the RC Lens lineup after they were smashed 9-1 by FC Como in the Champions League. On Sunday night, Todibo completed 90 minutes, but Lens suffered a 2-1 defeat to Olympique Marseille. Despite the result, it is a positive that Todibo played his first full game of the season. There was speculation that his loan could be terminated, but talk of this has cooled.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka is still not back from injury
Elsewhere, there was optimism that Aaron Wan-Bissaka would return for Aston Villa against Manchester United. This would have been timely, especially as Matty Cash was suspended. However, Wan-Bissaka has still not recovered from his hamstring injury.
This meant that Taylor Harwood-Bellis, who is predominantly a centre-back, played his first Premier League game for Villa at right-back. The match was one of the games of the weekend as it finished 4-4. This international break will give Wan-Bissaka more time to get fully fit. However, he will miss the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Sierra Leone for DR Congo.
Kaelan Casey played 90 minutes for Stevenage as they defeated Oxford United 1-0 in the FA Cup. This was a clash between two League One sides in the cup. However, it was still an upset as Oxford are third, while Stevenage are 16th in the division. The draw for the next round is later today, before Plymouth Parkway plays Berkhamstead.
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