It takes 210 minutes and penalties for Chelsea to finally beat Norwich in the FA Cup third round, while Swansea City also progress, but Bournemouth crash out.
Chelsea’s win over the Canaries came with some major collateral damage for both coach Antonio Conte and any number of his Fantasy Premier League (FPL) counterparts.
The Blues were seconds away from a 1-0 win, courtesy of Michy Batshuayi’s goal from a low Kenedy cross, when the Championship side equalised.
Thirty unwanted minutes of extra time duly followed, during which Pedro and Alvaro Morata were sent off, their bookable offences both including dives in the penalty area. Willian also saw yellow for the same sin.
The nine men still left on the pitch then took the tie to penalties and a 5-3 spot-kick win resulted.
That, however, was as good as it got for the home side.
The two Spaniards will now miss Saturday lunchtime’s trip to Brighton, which has prompted a further collapse in Morata’s ownership.
The striker has scored just once in eight Gameweeks, with more than a million managers moving him on as a result.
He remains the most sold player going into the weekend, with a further 133,000+ getting rid as his ownership heads towards the 800,000 mark – from a season-high of more than two million.
Goals have been a major issue for Conte’s side recently. They’d suffered three straight 0-0 stalemates in all competitions prior to last night’s result, which itself was the Blues’ fifth consecutive drawn match.
Losing Morata, however out of form he might be, isn’t exactly helpful then, particularly as his understudy, Batshuayi, had a poor match despite his goal.
Conte may well now deploy Eden Hazard, who came on in extra time last night, up front at Brighton.
That’s potentially good news for the 7.1% of managers who have stuck by the Belgian through an eight-Gameweek run in which he’s produced just one goal and a single assist.
But the midfielder has struggled for a goal threat in the false nine role, and with Pedro unavailable, Conte will have to re-think his attacking strategy anyway.
When not using Morata, the Italian has gone for a front three of Hazard, Pedro and Willian – a combination he won’t be able to use at the Amex Stadium.
As if all that wasn’t enough for the coach to consider, last night’s victory does nothing to ease his side’s fixture congestion.
Chelsea remain in four competitions.
They’ll complete their EFL Cup semi-final with Arsenal next Wednesday, follow that up with an FA Cup fourth round tie at home to Newcastle on the Sunday and then entertain Bournemouth in Gameweek 25 just three days later.
Should they progress in both cup competitions, they’ll have an FA Cup fifth round tie on the weekend of February 17, a Champions League Round of 16 match against Barcelona on the Tuesday after that and then the EFL Cup final on the following Sunday.
On current form, all of that might be a moot point, but Chelsea’s squad is starting to look decidedly thin anyway, particularly in the attacking areas.
Rotation is, as ever, inevitable.
An FA Cup win against Newcastle would mean a fifth round tie between league matches at home to West Brom and a huge clash at Old Trafford against Man United.
Conte certainly rang the changes last night, retaining only two players – Cesar Azpilicueta and Tiemoue Bakayoko – from the team that drew 0-0 with Leicester City at the weekend.
That was good news for the 26.0% who own Marcos Alonso as the Spaniard was rested from the squad.
But despite a fine short-term schedule (bha BOU wat WBA), all is not well at Chelsea and – Alonso aside – investment in their prime assets looks increasingly vexed.
Swansea strikers step up
Goals from Jordan Ayew and Wilfried Bony took Swansea City into the fourth round at the expense of Championship high-fliers Wolves.
Bony’s winner, from a Tom Carroll cross, was only the Ivorian’s third goal of an injury-hit season – he’s not scored in the league since Gameweek 16.
But the opener from Ayew, a superb individual effort, confirmed the Ghanaian international’s fine current form – he’s also found the net three times in the last five Gameweeks, only four of which were starts.
His ownership has been quietly rising since Gameweek 20 as a result, and he’s now in 7.2% of FPL squads as a productive budget (5.1) third forward.
More than 91,000 managers have jumped on board going into Gameweek 24, although the Swans’ immediate schedule involves a visit from Liverpool and a trip to Arsenal.
After that, however, things pick up (lei BUR bha WHU hud SOT) and Ayew looks well-placed to take advantage.
He was one of only three players – Alfie Mawson and Carroll were the others – to retain their places from the side that drew with Newcastle last weekend as coach Carlos Carvalhal made it abundantly clear that Premier League safety takes priority.
But they won nonetheless and now face a tie away at League Two outfit Notts County that suggests advancement to the fifth round is well within their grasp.
If that’s the case, they’ll have matches at home to Burnley and away at Brighton either side of that tie.
Chastened Cherries
There was one Premier League casualty last night as Bournemouth bowed out 3-0 away at Wigan.
Cherries boss Eddie Howe made eight changes to the side that started the 2-1 win over Arsenal on Sunday, and it showed.
The defeat sets up a classic ‘concentrate on the league’ scenario for Bournemouth, which is just as well for a team a mere four points above the relegation zone.
From a Fantasy perspective, the good news was that in-form striker Callum Wilson (5.8) had the night off.
He’s scored three times in four Gameweeks and is picking up new owners as a result.
More than 73,000 FPL managers have bought him this week, making him the seventh most popular pick of Gameweek 24, as the Cherries embark on a strong schedule (whu che STK hud NEW lei).
On another note, Bournemouth could now be guaranteed their fixture for Gameweek 31 when the FA Cup Quarter-Finals take place.
Howe’s men face West Brom in that set of fixtures and, unless the Baggies overcome Liverpool in their fourth round tie, that match will join Stoke vs Everton as a “lock-in” for Gameweek 31.
