The Belgian defender was making a rare start for Bolton in their FA Cup meeting with Tottenham when team-mate Fabrice Muamba suddenly collapsed on the pitch.
The tie was subsequently abandoned with the scores level at 1-1 and with Muamba reportedly making steady progress in hospital, the quarter-final is likely to be replayed in the near future.
Progress in that round of the competition would see the Trotters vie with Chelsea for a place in May’s Wembley showpiece and they could very well meet Wayne Bridge’s Sunderland there.
The former England defender played 90 minutes for the Black Cats as Martin O’Neill’s side earned themselves a home replay against Everton having drawn 1-1 at Goodison Park.
The battle at the bottom of the Championship goes on as Greg Cunningham and Nottingham Forest’s mid-week derby day defeat left teams below them chomping at the bit to better their own survival chances.
Neither Alex Nimely’s Coventry nor Ryan McGivern’s Bristol City were able to take advantage, however, as both sides played out goalless draws.
Liberian-born striker Nimely played 72 minutes for Andy Thorn’s Sky Blues but was unable to find the net as Coventry drew a blank at Watford to leave themselves four points adrift of safety.
McGivern played only the dying minutes of Bristol’s uninspiring stalemate with bottom-club Portsmouth having been used as a last minute substitute.
Meanwhile, in La Liga, Vladimir Weiss’ Espanyol kept their Champions League qualification hopes alive with a 3-1 win over lowly Racing Santander.
The Slovakian winger entered the fray after 41 minutes having seen his side fall a goal behind, and though helped when their opposition were reduced to ten men, the Spanish outfit completed the turnaround in style to reduce the gap between themselves and fourth spot to just two points.
European qualification isn’t a concern for Roque Santa Cruz’s Betis whose more pressing concerns will relate to survival after slumping to a 3-0 loss away at Rayo this weekend – the Paraguayan coming on in the 73rd minute to no devastating effect.
Yet with just five points separating John Guidetti’s Feyenoord from the top of the Eredivisie after their convincing 2-0 win over Steve McLaren’s FC Twente – the City striker playing 87 minutes for the Dutch club – it promises to be an exciting title run-in for the coveted Swede.
