After a lengthy break from Fantasy Premier League for the international break and FA Cup quarter-finals, it’s now time to strap back in for the season run-in.
We have nine gameweeks remaining before the end of the season, including some significant blank and double gameweeks to navigate.
It all kicks off again with FPL deadline is this: Gameweek 30 on Tuesday (deadline 6.15pm BST; 1.15pm ET), so how should the events of the last two weeks impact our planning for a midweek gameweek and the business end of the season?
The injury news you need to know
Erling Haaland (£14.8m) limped off in Manchester City’s FA Cup win against Bournemouth on Sunday afternoon with what appeared to be an ankle injury.
He was seen leaving the ground on crutches and in a protective boot. The timing couldn’t be worse, with City having an attractive home game against Leicester City next in Gameweek 30 as well as a potential double in Gameweek 33.
We are now seeing significant transfer traffic for his understudy Omar Marmoush (£7.3m), who managed a double-digit return last time out in the Premier League with a goal and assist against Brighton in Gameweek 29.
The injured Erling Haaland is replaced by Omar Marmoush in Manchester City’s FA Cup win over Bournemouth on Sunday (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest’s Chris Wood (£7.3m) sustained a knock to his hip while on international duty for New Zealand. He’s owned by almost 50 per cent of managers in the game, having racked up 18 league goals this season.
While there has been no official timescale put on his return, his absence from the FA Cup quarter-final matchday squad was telling that he’s unlikely to be back this midweek.
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Newcastle United’s Anthony Gordon (£7.4m) also sustained a hip injury at the end of England’s game against Albania last Friday.
The midfielder is suspended until Gameweek 31 and is set to have a Double Gameweek 32, but he’s now in danger of missing those fixtures against Manchester United and Crystal Palace.
Vitalii Mykolenko (£4.4m) also limped off during international duty with a thigh injury and could be a significant loss for Everton ahead of Wednesday’s Merseyside derby.
There’s been more positive news for Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.5m), who returned to action in the FA Cup last weekend following the head injury he sustained against Millwall in the previous round of the competition.
He looks set to be a popular acquisition in the coming weeks, with a confirmed Double Gameweek 32 and a further Double Gameweek 33 expected following Crystal Palace’s progression to the FA Cup semi-finals.
Arsenal’s Riccardo Calafiori (£5.8m) picked up a knee injury while with Italy and returned to north London for further assessment.
The other headlines to be aware of
The break from Premier League action has also been a significant one for wider football news, including a potential move to Real Madrid this summer for Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.3m). The defender is a major doubt for the Merseyside derby on Wednesday evening with an ankle injury.
But in more surprising news, Arsenal talisman Bukayo Saka (£10.2m), who has been out since late December with a hamstring injury, could return to action in Gameweek 30 and could even start his team’s game against Fulham on Tuesday, according to his manager Mikel Arteta.
Bukayo Saka is one of the best midfielders in FPL — and he could play in Gameweek 30 (Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, Cole Palmer (£10.8m) was pictured in first-team training with Chelsea on Friday, with his side set to host Spurs on Thursday evening.
He hasn’t scored in the league since Gameweek 21 but produced a significant haul in the reverse of this fixture, with two goals and one assist in a 4-3 win.
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The news is less positive for Wolves’ Matheus Cunha (£6.9m), who has seen his suspension for his red card against Bournemouth in the fifth round of the FA Cup extended by an additional game. The forward is now set to return in Gameweek 32 against Tottenham Hotspur.
Cunha already missed the win against Southampton before the international break, and will be also absent for the visit of West Ham (April 1) the trip to Ipswich Town (April 5) in the midweek and weekend fixtures.
What do the FA Cup quarter-final results mean for the FPL schedule?
For the majority of FPL’s mini hiatus, many fantasy managers had largely switched off since future plans hinged on the outcomes in last weekend’s FA Cup quarter-finals — although we are still waiting on any changes to the fixture schedule to be confirmed.
Crystal Palace, Manchester City and Aston Villa’s progression in the competition means that they will all blank in Gameweek 34, with their fixtures likely to be rescheduled for Gameweek 33.
In those to-be-rearranged games, Crystal Palace face Arsenal while Manchester City and Aston Villa play each other. Arsenal and Aston Villa’s participation in the Champions League also means that their fixtures need to be rescheduled as soon as possible.
Nottingham Forest were set to face Brentford on the weekend of Gameweek 34, with fantasy experts predicting that this fixture will remain in the gameweek but be pushed back to midweek.
In addition, we will get a further blank in Gameweek 37 caused by the FA Cup final, with postponed games likely to be rescheduled in Gameweek 36.
In that week, Crystal Palace were set to face Wolves at home, Manchester City host Bournemouth, Nottingham Forest travel to West Ham while Aston Villa entertain Spurs.
Crystal Palace could have double gameweeks in Gameweek 32 and 33 (Henry Nicholls/AFP via Getty Images)
Should you use your wildcard in Gameweek 30 or 31?
The strategy of playing the wildcard ahead of Gameweek 30 has quickly gathered momentum amid the perfect storm of scheduling clarity and an injury crisis.
Given the teams who have progressed in the FA Cup, we have greater confidence of where their fixtures will be rearranged, with clarity expected from the Premier League later this week.
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With three of the top five highest-scoring assets in the game yellow-flagged for this week’s round of fixtures, managers may be forced into playing the wildcard prematurely to get themselves out of a hole.
Gameweek 31 is still an attractive wildcard period on paper, since we should have all fixtures confirmed at this point and more information regarding player availability.
However, Gameweek 30 is still a good window, especially for managers holding the Assistant Manager chip, which could then be activated for Gameweek 31 to 33.
For those planning to Free Hit in Blank Gameweek 34, Crystal Palace should be the key team to target with your wildcard given that they could have two doubles in quick succession.
Newcastle United assets will also be popular given that they only have the Premier League left to concentrate on, plus the looming Double Gameweek 32.
Manchester City assets should also be high on the agenda, too, with Leicester City at home a sound entry point in Gameweek 30 and then a predicted double in Gameweek 33.
(Top photos: Getty Images)
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