Weekend TV Preview: October 17th - 19th

(All times UK)

Friday 17th October

19:30 VfL Bochum v Borussia Monchengladbach, Bundesliga, Setanta Sports 1
'Gladbach's Sporting Director has taken charge of the first team while the search continues for a new coach. The last match they'd have wished for was a short trip to the determined and tenacious Bochum. If you only see one Bundesliga game this weekend, wait untill Sunday.

Saturday 18th October

08:00 Gamba Osaka v Jubilo Iwata, J-League, British Eurosport 2
Two out of two wins for Jubilo have hoisted them into fifteenth place. There are currently five points between seventeenth and eighth in the J-League so every one counts. Osaka are seventh with little to look forward to except their holidays.

12:30 Inverness CT v Celtic, Scottish Premier League, Setanta Sports 1
The last time Cally played the Bhoys at home they won so they will draw some strength from that at least. In the SPL however, Celtic are imperious and unless their pperations are affected by the international break, it should be an away win.

12:45 Middlesbrough v Chelsea, Premier League, Sky Sports 1/HD1
Decent game this. Boro have a good record against Chelsea at the Riverside and are well known for lifting themselves against the big teams. Chelsea are a fantastic side and if everyone reads their lines, we are all in for a cracker.

17:20 Crystal Palace v Barnsley, Championship, Sky Sports 1/HD1
Palace v Barnsley in High Definition? Who are you to resist?

17:30 Manchester Utd v West Bromwich Albion, Premier League, Setanta Sports 1
Eek! There is much to admire about Tony Mowbray's total football aspirations. However, at Old Trafford its hard to see the Albion not getting cut to ribbons.

19:00 Atletico Madrid v Real Madrid, La Liga, Sky Sports Xtra
On the pitch, a blue riband fixture. Local derby with two Champions League teams pitched against each other. Off the pitch...

20:00 Lyon v Lille, Ligue 1, Setanta Sports 2
Lyon's first defeat of the season came at good time just before the break. Now the players have had a couple of weeks to think about what they've done and should come back stronger. Unless Lille have something to say about it.

21:00 Espanyol v Villareal, La Liga, Sky Sports Xtra
With the season starting to take shape there are no signs of a Villareal hangover from the last campaign. Espanyol have come through some tough fixtures against Barca and Real but will find no relief here.

Sunday 19th October

13:15 Sheffield Wednesday v Sheffield Utd, Championship, Sky Sports 1/HD1

What better way for Wednesday to celebrate a decent start to a season than by sticking it to your neighbours. Hilsborough will be jumping when they welcome the Blades who themselves are in the promotion hunt. Of the two English games on Sky on Sunday, this is the one to watch.

14:00 Hibernian v Hearts, Scottish Premier League, Setanta Sports 1

Yet another derby. Do they do this on purpose? The record books suggest a tight game, as does the league table. As an introduction to non-Old Firm Scottish football, you could do worse.

16:00 Hamburg v FC Schalke, Bundesliga, Setanta Sports 2

Hats off to Setanta for deciding to put this game on. Martin Jol has been attracting a lot of attention form the English media thanks to the exploits of his entertaining Hamburg team who sit atop the table at the time of writing. What's more, with their firm commitment to letting the opposition score against them, entertainment is guaranteed.

16:00 Stoke City v Tottenham Hotspur, Premier League, Sky Sports 1/HD1
Should be a decent atmosphere at the Britannia Stadium. If Stoke are going to survive in the Premier League they need to be taking points off the clubs below them.

18:00 Athletic Bilbao v Barcelona, La Liga, Sky Sports Interactive / Sky Sports 1
Barca are in the groove and Bilbao are not, frankly. Away win.

20:00 Almeria v Sevilla, La Liga, Sky Sports 1
Sevilla are unbeaten this season, dropping points only to Santander and Betis. Almeria have only lost once themselves this season so far.

20:00 Valenciennes v Marseille, Ligue 1, Setanta Sports 1

The home side will need every point this season and Marseille are not in the best form. The trouble is that Valenciennes haven't won since August.