The Suspension Tightrope – Gameweek 29

With only a handful of sides involved in Premier League and FA Cup action since our last update, there’s been little movement among those players toeing the line on the Suspension Tightrope. It’s as you were at the summit, with Neil Taylor, Phil Bardsley, Cesc Fabregas, Ciaran Clark and Sebastian Larsson teetering just one booking away from a two-match suspension.

By virtue of Gabriel Agbonlahor’s caution in Aston Villa’s Fa Cup win over rivals West Brom, the Villains are now the most represented club in the eight-yellows-or-above bracket – a cause for concern for manager Tim Sherwood, who’s already contending with a raft of injuries and suspensions.

Manchester United defender Marcos Rojo picked up his fourth caution in seven starts against Newcastle, moving up to the eight-yellow mark. The Red Devils can ill afford to lose another member of their rearguard in the wake of Jonny Evans’ suspension, so the Argentine will have to stay out of trouble for four Gameweeks before the slate is wiped clean on 14 April.

In terms of newly-suspended players, Jack Grealish misses Villa’s Gameweek 29 encounter against Sunderland after he picked up two quick yellows as a late substitute against West Brom. Meanwhile, Baggies midfielder Claudio Yacob committed two bookable offences in the same match but was handed a two-game suspension due to it being his second red card of the season – the 27-year-old was sent off for a dangerous challenge on Diego Costa at Stamford Bridge.

Angel Di Maria earned a red card at a particularly inopportune moment, just before Manchester United embark on an unforgiving fun of fixtures (TOT, liv, AVL, MCI, che) that could define their fight for a Champions League berth. The Argentine winger will sit out United’s home tie against Tottenham on Saturday following the ignominy of being booked for simulation and aggressive behaviour towards referee Michael Oliver in the space of 20 seconds.

Jonny Evans began his six-match ban after being charged with spitting at Newcastle’s Papiss Cisse. United’s FA Cup exit against Arsenal on Monday means Evans will now be unavailable until the Gameweek 34 encounter with Everton. For his part in the incident, Cisse received a seven-match ban, with the additional penalty a product of receiving red for elbowing Everton’s Seamus Coleman in December. The Toon frontman will be back in contention for West Brom’s visit to St James’ Park in Gameweek 36.

Joey Barton serves the last of a three-match ban as QPR roll up to Palace this Saturday, whilst Alan Hutton sits out the second of a two-match suspension as Villa make their way to Sunderland.

Elsewhere, Gareth Barry and Lee Cattermole start the first of their two-match suspensions after topping off the Tightrope and Palace’s Mile Jedinak sits out the second of a four-match ban for violent conduct. Sunderland winger Adam Johnson remains suspended by the club pending the outcome of police investigations relating to off-field matters.

Amongst those returning players, Glenn Murray, Nemanja Matic, Jack Colback and Morgan Amalfitano are all back in contention for Gameweek 29, having served their time. Matic twisted his knee celebrating the Blues’ Capital One Cup triumph but recovered in time to face Paris Saint-German in the Champions League last 16 this evening.