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.

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The Watchlist

Goalkeepers

Player Club Factors
No Change Krul NEW A, Vs
No Change Hart MCI B, Vs
No Change Kenny QPR C, Vs, Rest, £
No Change Mignolet SUN B, £
Up Al-Habsi WIG B, Vs, £
No Change Foster WBA B
No Change Vorm SWA B, VsX, £
Down Hennessey WOL B, Vs
No Change Sørensen STO B, Vs, Rest, £
Up Bogdan BOL C, Rest, £

Defenders

Player Club Factors
No Change Kompany MCI B, Vs
Up Huth STO B, Vs
No Change Simpson NEW B, Vs, £
No Change Riise FUL C, Vs
Up Bardsley SUN B, £
Up Senderos FUL B, Vs, Rest, £
Up Taiwo QPR B, Vs, £
No Change Evans MUN B, VsX, £
No Change Taylor NEW B, Vs, Rest, OoP
Up Rangel SWA B, VsX, £
No Change Clark AVL B, Vs, OoP, £
No Change McAuley WBA B, £
Down Johnson WOL B, £
Up Vermaelen ARS C
Down Enrique LIV B, VsX
Down Assou-Ekotto TOT A, VsX

Midfielders

Player Club Factors
No Change Bale TOT A, VsX
No Change Dempsey FUL A, Vs, OoP
No Change Silva MCI A, Vs
No Change Sessegnon SUN A, £
No Change Valencia MUN A, VsX
No Change Walters STO B, Vs, OoP, £
Up Moses WIG B, Vs, OoP, £
Up McClean SUN A, £
No Change Sinclair SWA B, VsX, £
Up Ben Arfa NEW B, Vs, Rest, OoP
Down Mata CHE C
Up Barton QPR B, Vs
Up Sigurdsson SWA B, VsX, £
No Change Ireland AVL B, Vs, Rest, £
No Change Donovan EVE B, VsX
No Change Morrison WBA B, £
Up Buzsaky QPR B, Vs, Rest, Inj, £
Up Murphy FUL B, Vs

Forwards

Player Club Factors
No Change van Persie ARS B
No Change Agüero MCI C, Vs
Up Ba NEW C, Vs
No Change Zamora QPR B, Vs
Up Dzeko MCI C, Vs, Rest
Up Bent AVL A, Vs
Up Morison NOR B, £
Down Fletcher WOL B, £
No Change Rooney MUN C, VsX, Inj
Down Sturridge CHE C
Down Welbeck MUN A, VsX, Rest, £
No Change Crouch STO B, Vs
No Change Adebayor TOT C, VsX
Up Odemwingie WBA C, Vs, Rest
Up Keane AVL A, Vs, £

Selection Factors

A, B, C Current Form
Vs Favourable Fixtures
VsX Unfavourable Fixtures
Rest Rotation Risk
Inj Injured/Returning from Injury
OoP Out of Position
£ Potential Bargain
Sus Suspended/Near Suspension

Suspension Tightrope

Player Team YC
Lowe BLA 9
Terry CHE 8
Barton QPR 8
Cattermole SUN 8
Song ARS 7
Meireles CHE 7
Fellaini EVE 7
Huth STO 7
Shawcross STO 7
Caldwell WIG 7
Henry WOL 7
N'Zonzi BLA 6
Cole CHE 6
Luiz CHE 6
Lucas LIV 6
Barry MCI 6
Naughton NOR 6
Larsson SUN 6
Hunt WOL 6

“I think we needed that. I had good years with Neil Warnock but we were in a bad position.I spoke with the chairman and the situation now has changed. They want to keep me and we're going to have a discussion when we come back.”

Adel Taarabt seems glad to have a new man in charge at Loftus Road