The results of this weekend's FA Cup quarter-final matches will have a huge bearing on how managers in Fantasy Premier League plan for the run-in.
Firstly, the results will finalise the schedule for Blank Gameweek 34 (BGW34) in Fantasy. 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.
The matches which are removed from BGW34 will be given new dates, which will determine the remaining Double Gameweeks for the season. A Double Gameweek is when a club has two matches in a single Gameweek and players from those teams get two chances to earn FPL points.
It is only when managers have all this information at their disposal that they can make informed decisions around their chip strategies for the final nine Gameweeks of 2024/25.
How FA Cup quarter-finals will affect Blank Gameweek 34
Either three or four Premier League fixtures will be removed from BGW34 due to the FA Cup.
Seven Premier League clubs are through to the FA Cup quarter-finals.
Those who progress to the semi-finals will NOT have a Premier League fixture in BGW34 of Fantasy, because the semi-finals happen on the same weekend.
Significantly, those teams' scheduled Premier League opponents on that weekend would ALSO be without a Premier League match.
Many FPL managers are planning to play their Free Hit chip in BGW34 to alleviate those problems.
At present there are only FOUR Premier League matches confirmed to be going ahead in BGW34: Chelsea v Everton, Liverpool v Tottenham Hotspur, Wolverhampton Wanderers v Leicester City and Newcastle United v Ipswich Town.
All of the other scheduled fixtures in BGW34 could be postponed because the clubs in bold below could still reach the FA Cup semi-finals.
GW34 fixtures that could be postponed
GW34 fixture Fixture postponed if...
Arsenal v Crystal Palace Palace win in QF
Bournemouth v Man Utd Bournemouth win in QF
Brighton v West Ham Brighton win in QF
Man City v Aston Villa Man City or Villa win in QF
Nottingham Forest v Brentford Forest win in QF
Southampton v Fulham Fulham win in QF
This weekend's FA Cup quarter-finals
Saturday, 12:15 GMT: Preston v Aston Villa
Saturday, 17:15 GMT: AFC Bournemouth v Manchester City
Sunday, 13:30 BST:Fulham v Crystal Palace
Sunday: 16:30 BST:Brighton & Hove Albion v Nottingham Forest
Handily, managers will know the FA Cup quarter-final results by Sunday evening, which is two days before the Gameweek 30 deadline of 18:15 BST on Tuesday 1 April.
Many are planning to Wildcard in Gameweek 30 or 31, depending on both the outcomes of those cup ties and whether the new dates for the rescheduled matches have been announced.
At present, those managers will also use the chip to bring in Crystal Palace and Newcastle United players for their Double Gameweek 32 (DGW32).
They could then deploy their Bench Boost chip in DGW32, if they still have it available, potentially owning six players who all play twice, and therefore getting 12 appearances from those players alone.
Another option is to use the Triple Captain chip in DGW32 on Alexander Isak (£9.3m) for Newcastle's two home matches against Manchester United and Palace.
Alternatively, you could use the Assistant Manager chip on Oliver Glasner (£0.8m) over Gameweeks 30-32 to profit from Palace's four matches.
But remember, you can only use ONE chip in any Gameweek, so if you play the Assistant Manager chip in Gameweek 30, you can't use another chip until Gameweek 33.
What the FA Cup quarter-finals mean for future Double Gameweeks
At present, the only confirmed Double Gameweek that managers can plan for is DGW32.
It looks very likely that more will follow, with potentially up to EIGHT clubs getting a future Double Gameweek depending on this weekend's FA Cup results.
The crucial question here for Fantasy managers is WHEN those rescheduled fixtures will be announced.
It's uncertain whether we will have the full picture for Double Gameweeks before the Gameweek 30 deadline, which is only 48 hours after the last FA Cup quarter-final is played.
This is why many managers are waiting to finalise their chip strategies, including their Wildcard, until the Gameweek 31 deadline of 11:00 BST on Saturday 5 April, which gives the fixture reschedulers an extra four days to decide new dates.
When those Double Gameweeks will take place is another question altogether.
Certainly, if history repeats itself, a Double Gameweek 37 could be on the cards. There is also a possibility that any clubs still involved in Europe may have an earlier Double Gameweek to avoid fixture congestion.