As reported last week, there was potential for the double gameweeks ahead to be disrupted if there were some untimely draws in the FA Cup fixtures last weekend. Fortunately for us the only draw in the quarter-finals came at Craven Cottage where Fulham and Spurs played out a stalemate. In the two games we needed a definitive result in (Reading v Aston Villa and Chelsea v Stoke) we got just that.

This means is that in just over a weeks time, Chelsea lock down their double in gameweek 31 with trips to Blackburn and Portsmouth. In the even more immediate future Aston Villa can now make the midweek trip to the DW stadium to give both themselves and Wigan a double fixture this coming gameweek. Villa then roll around again joining a slew of teams in gameweek 31 with two fixtures. O’Neill’s side take on Wolves and Sunderland in two tempting looking fixtures at Villa Park. Planning for that is well underway and we will bring you more insightful “Scouting the Doubles” reports as the week progress to give you the lowdown on form and player targets…

Now we’ve traversed through the FA Cup quarter-finals, what of the semi-finals in April? They will cause disruption for the teams involved and their scheduled league opponents in gameweek 34. If you take a gander at our Season Ticker we have made some slight modifications to the new spearmint green colour. Technically, all of those fixtures highlighted have been postponed and should be a stark yellow colour. However, based on precedent and a gap in the schedules, we believe all those fixtures could and in fact should be rescheduled for the midweek that follows, that would see these fixtures remain in gameweek 34.

We are just working on assumptions here though, and just because it has happened before doesn’t mean it will again; if we don’t get any word in the not too distant future, those fixtures will turn that dreaded shade of yellow. So while we think we should be in the clear, be prepared for the possibility of one more (and hopefully final) blank gameweek this season.