Tuesday again? These weeks come around so quickly. Not to worry though, we’ve got you covered with all of the TV offerings this week. The Champions League is back, there’s a full football league programme and the triumphant return of Friday Night Football…
Tuesday 12th September
Les grandes équipes…The champions!!
I had to Google that. They were the lyrics to the Champions League anthem, apparently. That of course signals the return of Europe’s premier club competition, with three British clubs in action. Manchester United host Basel whilst Chelsea welcome FK Qarabag, but the task awaiting Celtic is far more problematic. PSG and their riches are the visitors to Celtic Park, with Neymar and Mbappe looking to make their mark on the European stage for their new club. If the British clubs aren’t your bag, there’s the small matter of Barcelona vs Juventus. Will we see another defensive masterclass from the Italians or will Messi find a way past Buffon?
There’s also a full football league programme, with the Championship, League One and League Two all providing entertainment up and down the country. Quite the night
Wednesday 13th September
The Champions League continues as the other half of the field get their campaigns underway. From a British perspective, it’ll be another magical European night at Anfield as Liverpool welcome Sevilla in a repeat of the Europa League final of a few years ago. Manchester City are also on the schedule, Pep’s men facing a tricky trip to Rotterdam to face Feyenoord. Arguably the biggest game of the night is Tottenham vs Borussia Dortmund, which you really think Spurs will have to win if they are to have any chance of progressing from a group that also contains Real Madrid. It’s at Wembley though, so a great opportunity for Spurs to silence the doubters. BT have all of your Champions League needs covered, by the way.
Thursday 14th September
Everybody loves the Europa League, right? Especially you, Arsene. Yes that’s right, Europe’s biggest inconvenience is back and…the same as ever. I really like the Europa League, and to be honest most of Europe seems to love it too, but Premier League managers seem to hold it in great contempt. There’s always a load of goals about even in the group format, so sit back and enjoy it (and bet on both teams to score). Everton are up first, away to Atalanta at 6pm, whilst Arsenal host Cologne at 8pm. Imagine how quiet the atmosphere is going to be at The Emirates? It’s a serious concern.
Friday 15th September
Good news! Friday night football is back. Bad news! It’s Bournemouth vs Brighton. Is this a derby? I mean, they’re both very south, but 100 miles apart. Surely that’s too far for any real hatred to be built up. Anyway, Bournemouth are really struggling after 4 straight defeats whilst Brighton will be relatively happy with the start they’ve made. You’d have to fancy Bournemouth to get off the mark here but their style usually makes it an entertaining game regardless.
BT’s alternative is Partick Thistle against Rangers, in an all Glasgow clash. Now this is a derby, except not the Glasgow derby. It might be decent.
Saturday 16th September
You’ve got to love that Saturday feeling. Even if the lunch time kick off is Crystal Palace against Southampton, Saturday is Saturday and there’s the likelihood you’ll see Roy Hodgson’s return to the dugout. Lovely, terrible Roy. Frank de Boer didn’t last long and at the rate Mauricio Pellegrino is going he might not last many more. That alone makes this an intriguing contest to watch over Saturday lunch time. You could of course watch Leyton Orient vs Hartlepool on BT Sport, two horribly mismanaged clubs. After the 3pm’s are done and dusted, the Saturday evening offering from BT is Tottenham against Swansea. Again, the type of match that used to look like a fill-yer-boots affair for Spurs but with the Wembley factor to contend with, nobody really knows anymore. If you’d rather watch the Championship, Barnsley host Aston Villa at 5.30pm on Sky as Steve Bruce continues to find ways to set up a team not to score goals. You can round off the day with Atletico Madrid against Malaga, if you so desire.
Sunday 17th September
Now this is a Super Sunday. Having said that compared to last week’s schedule it couldn’t get much worse. Chelsea vs Arsenal at 1.30pm is about as good as it gets in the early Sunday afternoon slot, even if Arsenal aren’t the team they once were. I don’t imagine anything other than a Chelsea win but it’s always good to see just how Arsenal will shoot themselves in the foot. We’re then off to Old Trafford at 4pm for Wayne Rooney’s Old Trafford return. Let’s just hope he didn’t drive. Everton were very disappointing last weekend at home to Spurs so we’ll see how they get on with the Thursday-Sunday schedule. Of course not only is Rooney facing his old club but so is Romelu Lukaku, so we love all the little subplots going on. Man Utd will probably win.
With Juventus, Real Madrid and PSG all in action it’s a jam-packed Sunday!
Monday 18th September
We have a problem. It’s Carabao Cup week so there’s no Monday Night Football. What we do have though, is, er, Espanyol against Celta Vigo in La Liga. It might be good? It’s better than nothing.
That’s it for another week, and as I nip off for a quick break I’ll leave you in the hands of my colleagues for the next few weeks. Toodles for now.