How EFL Cup and FA Cup results will affect FPL managers

The results of domestic cup matches can help managers in Fantasy Premier League start preparing for both Blank Gameweek 29 (BGW29) and Blank Gameweek 34 (BGW34).

A Blank Gameweek is a Gameweek containing fewer than the normal 10 matches, where some clubs don’t play a Premier League fixture, and players from those teams score ZERO points in FPL.

EFL Cup so far

In the EFL Cup semi-final first legs last week, Newcastle United won 2-0 at Arsenal, while Tottenham Hotspur beat Liverpool 1-0.

The second legs take place next month, when Newcastle face Arsenal on Wednesday 5 February and Liverpool welcome Spurs to Anfield 24 hours later.

The winners of the semi-finals then face each other in the final at Wembley Stadium on Sunday 16 March. As a result, those two clubs would be unable to play their scheduled Premier League fixture that weekend, in Gameweek 29, so both clubs would have a Blank Gameweek in Fantasy, and the same would apply to their scheduled Premier League opponents.

Two of the following four matches will be removed from Gameweek 29 due to the EFL Cup final, because two of the four clubs in bold will be playing at Wembley instead.

Which matches could blank in GW29?

Arsenal v Chelsea
Aston Villa v Liverpool
Fulham v Spurs
Newcastle v Crystal Palace

If Newcastle hold onto their lead against Arsenal in the EFL Cup semi-final and reach the final, the Magpies’ home match against Crystal Palace would be removed from Gameweek 29.

This would have a major effect as managers would be without Alexander Isak (£9.3m). The Swede’s 53 per cent ownership makes him the most-popular forward in Fantasy and third most-picked player overall.

Isak isn’t the only sought-after Magpies player in Fantasy right now. His team-mates Lewis Hall (£4.9m) and Anthony Gordon (£7.5m) are also the most-bought players in their positions ahead of the Gameweek 21 deadline of 18:00 GMT on Tuesday 14 January.

What if Arsenal fight back to win?

If Arsenal battle back to overcome Newcastle in the second leg of the EFL Cup semi-final, the Gunners’ home match against Chelsea would be removed from Gameweek 29 instead.

This would have huge implications for managers in Fantasy across many positions.

Chelsea’s Cole Palmer (£11.4m) is the second most-popular player overall in 2024/25 Fantasy, with 68 per cent of managers owning the midfielder.

Arsenal’s David Raya (£5.6m) is the most-popular goalkeeper, selected by more than 30 per cent, while Gunners centre-backs William Saliba (£6.3m) and Gabriel (£6.4m) are the most-owned defenders, with each found in over 29 per cent of squads.

Why Salah could get TWO Double Gameweeks

In the other match-up, if Liverpool can turn around their 1-0 deficit against Spurs from the first leg, both the Reds and Aston Villa would have a Blank Gameweek 29.

The big news here would obviously be that Mohamed Salah (£13.6m) – the top-scoring and most-owned player in Fantasy – would miss out. 

Combined with the recent postponement of their derby visit to Everton, this would mean Liverpool would have TWO matches still to be rescheduled and they would therefore be expected to get two Double Gameweeks later in the season. 

A Double Gameweek is where there are more than 10 fixtures, with at least one club playing TWICE in one Fantasy Gameweek. Players from that club get two chances to score FPL points.

Salah’s relentless form in 2024/25 Fantasy shows why many managers will be playing their Triple Captain chip on him if Liverpool do indeed get a Double Gameweek. 

In just 19 matches under Arne Slot, the Egyptian has produced 18 goals and 13 assists. That’s already one assist MORE than he managed all last season. 

It’s fair to say that a semi-final win for Spurs would cause considerably less disruption to managers’ attacks in Fantasy.

This would result in a BGW29 for Spurs and Fulham, whose summer signing Emile Smith Rowe (£5.3m) is the most-picked midfielder or forward from those two clubs, found in over 10.6 per cent of squads.

How FA Cup affects Gameweek 34

The four clubs who reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup this season are expected to have a Blank Gameweek 34, because both of those cup ties take place on the same weekend as Premier League matches.

Seventeen of the 20 Premier League clubs progressed through the third round to reach the fourth round at the weekend. Only Arsenal, Brentford and West Ham United were knocked out.

Those three clubs are now free to play their scheduled Premier League fixtures in Gameweek 34. However, they will need their opponents to be available too, so those opponents will also need to also be knocked out of the cup in the fourth round, fifth round or quarter-finals.

At least one of the fixtures below, and up to four, will be removed from Gameweek 34 because of clubs being involved in the FA Cup semi-finals.

Which matches could blank in GW34?*

Arsenal v Crystal Palace
Bournemouth v Man Utd
Brighton v West Ham
Chelsea v Everton
Liverpool v Spurs
Man City v Aston Villa
Newcastle v Ipswich
Nottingham Forest v Brentford 
Southampton v Fulham
Wolves v Leicester
*Clubs in bold are still in the FA Cup

At least four more Premier League clubs will be eliminated in the fourth round because there are four all-Premier League ties.

Manchester United host Leicester City, while Brighton & Hove Albion face Chelsea. Everton entertain AFC Bournemouth, and Spurs visit Aston Villa. 

The fourth round will be played on the weekend of 8-9 February.

FA Cup fourth-round ties for Premier League clubs

Man Utd v Leicester City
Brighton v Chelsea
Exeter City v Nottingham Forest
Coventry City v Ipswich Town
Blackburn Rovers v Wolves
Mansfield/Wigan v Fulham
Birmingham City v Newcastle United
Plymouth Argyle v Liverpool
Everton v AFC Bournemouth
Aston Villa v Tottenham Hotspur
Southampton v Burnley
Leyton Orient/Derby v Man City
Doncaster Rovers v Crystal Palace

If Crystal Palace, Brighton and Nottingham Forest are eliminated from the FA Cup in the fourth round then their Premier League fixtures can go ahead as scheduled in Gameweek 34, because their opponents have already been eliminated from the cup.

Are there fewer Blank Gameweeks in FPL this season?

Historically, managers have saved their chips to navigate Blank Gameweeks or maximise points returns from Double Gameweeks.

Yet despite the impending Blank Gameweek 29, there are expected to be fewer, and smaller, Blank and Double Gameweeks this season, which could result in a change in managers’ strategies. 

In previous seasons, the FA Cup quarter-finals have also clashed with Premier League fixtures, often resulting in the biggest Blank Gameweek of the campaign. Indeed, last season there were only FOUR Premier League fixtures on that weekend.

However, a change to the football calendar in 2024/25 means that the FA Cup quarter-finals will now take place on a weekend in late March when there AREN’T any Premier League matches also taking place, so there will be no clash of fixtures.

With the Assistant Manager chip also becoming available from Gameweek 24, there looks to be an increasing number of tactical approaches available to managers during the second half of the campaign.