Midfielder Sasa Lukic is set to join up with Serbia’s squad, despite missing three consecutive Premier League games with a groin injury.

Town boss Gary O’Neil hopes that he’ll be fit to feature against Bournemouth on Sunday (2pm) before travelling to Belgrade ahead of the Eagles’ Nations League A clash against Germany on Friday, November 13th.

Veljko Paunovic’s side then travel to Volos to face Greece on Monday, November 16th.

Serbia currently sit bottom of Group 2 with no points from four games. They will need maximum points from their final two matches – while hoping that Germany lose to the Netherlands – if they are to avoid an immediate relegation to Nations League B.

His regular midfielder partner at Portman Road, Exequiel Palacios, is also set to jet off next week, having been called up by Argentina.

Exequiel Palacios has been speculatively linked with a return to boyhood club River Plate (Image: Ross Halls)

Lionel Scaloni’s side play friendly matches against Uruguay (Friday, November 13th) in Buenos Aires and Costa Rica (Tuesday, November 17th) in Cordoba – their first games since Lionel Messi’s retirement from international duty.

Palacios has been subject to speculation surrounding his future from outlets in his homeland, with El Intransigente reporting that boyhood club River Plate are keen on re-signing him in January.

However, having played for Bayer Leverkusen and Ipswich this season, he would be able to play for them in the 2026/27 campaign. The 28-year-old is also under contract at Portman Road until the summer of 2030.

Versatile attacker Daizen Maeda has been named in Japan’s squad for their friendly fixtures.

The Samurai Blue will be based in Singapore, beginning with a clash against South American giants Brazil on Saturday, November 14th. They will then face Julio Enciso’s Paraguay on Tuesday, November 17th.

Daizen Maeda is set to face Julio Enciso's Paraguay later this month (Image: Ross Halls)

Maeda will remain at Ipswich at the start of 2027 following the postponement of the Asian Cup. He was initially set to miss as many as five Premier League games, plus the FA Cup third round, to compete in the tournament.

It does mean that the clash against Paraguay will likely bring Hajime Moriyasu’s stint in charge of Japan to an end after nearly eight years. The 58-year-old was set to lead them at the Asian Cup before being replaced by Under-21s boss Go Oiwa, but that switch is now set to happen sooner.

Centre-back Issa Diop will continue his AFCON qualifying campaign with Morocco.

The Atlas Lions sit top of Group A with six points, having beaten both Gabon and Lesotho 2-0. Mohamed Ouahbi’s team return to action with two games against Niger. 

The home leg in Casablanca is pencilled in for Friday, November 13th, with the ‘away’ game taking place on Tuesday, November 17th in Rabat, Morocco, due to Niger’s lack of a CAF-approved stadium for international matches.

Issa Diop will fetaure in Morocco's double-header against Niger (Image: Ross Halls)

Finally, Sindre Walle Egeli will be away with Norway U21, having helped them qualify for Euro U21 last month.

Jan Peder Jalland's side topped Group G with 17 points from eight games, and have now scheduled a friendly fixture against Poland U21 on Friday, November 13th in Murcia, Spain. They will then head to Faro to face Portugal U21 on Tuesday, November 17th.

More Ipswich players are expected to be called up by the end of the week, including the likes of Enciso (Paraguay), Dara O'Shea (Republic of Ireland) and Abdul Fatawu (Ghana).