This is now the final week of the traditional October international break ahead of a major change to the domestic and international fixture schedules in time for next year.

European football supporters have got fed up of the stop-start nature to the season, with two-week international breaks popping up in September, October and November.

From 2026 onwards, the September and October breaks will be merged into one period which covers the last week of September and early October. Each nation will play a maximum of four matches in that time.

It means that Aston Villa and Premier League rivals will have three weeks without a fixture from September 21 next year - but it does reduce the total length of international break across the two months.

The decision to merge the two windows was made at the FIFA Council meeting in March 2023.

England, who will be fresh from the 2026 summer World Cup, will play four Nations League matches in September and October next year.

Villa currently have three players in Thomas Tuchel's England squad: Ollie Watkins, Morgan Rogers and Ezri Konsa.

Emi Martinez is with Argentina, John McGinn is...