Midweek TV Preview: 31 January - 3 February

Tuesday 1 February

19.45 Aberdeen v Celtic, Scottish Premier League, ESPN/ESPN HD
Celtic have the chance to go eight points clear of Rangers, who will have three games in hand on their city rivals by 10pm on Tuesday. The Bhoys face Aberdeen, who they beat by virtue of an Anthony Stokes goal as recently as 22nd January, but thrashed on Saturday in the League Cup.

20.00 West Bromwich Albion v Wigan Athletic, Premier League, Sky Sports 2/HD2
Strugglers Wigan head for the Hawthorns aiming to leapfrog the Baggies and climb out of the relegation zone and win in the Premier League for the first time since Boxing Day. Luckily for Roberto Martinez, they just happened to be away in the Black Country that day too, beating Wolves in another crucial basement battle.

Wednesday 2 February

19.45 Palermo v Juventus, Serie A, ESPN/ESPN HD
Juve's Champions League hopes took an enormous blow on Sunday evening. A late Udinese winner from Alexis Sanchez completed a comeback from 1-0 to 1-2 for the visitors to leave the Old Lady in desperate need of a win against another of their rivals, Palermo. The winners on Tuesday night go sixth.

20.00 Fulham v Newcastle United, Premier League, Sky Sports 2/HD2
Fulham have been dragged into the relegation scrap and host a Newcastle side unbeaten in four Premier League matches. The reverse fixture finished goalless in November, but the Magpies have failed to score in only one match since then. Fulham have only conceded three league goals this calendar year.

21.00 Real Madrid v Sevilla, Copa del Rey, Sky Sports 4/HD4
It's crunch time in the King's Cup and this semi-final second leg sees Real Madrid and Sevilla battle it out for the right to play Barcelona (presumably - Barca won their first leg 5-0) in the final. Real lead 1-0 thanks to a Karim Benzema strike in the first leg last Wednesday.

Thursday 3 February

00.00 (Thu morning) Gremio v Liverpool, Copa Libertadores, Premier Sports
No, I don't have Premier Sports either. If you, it might be worth tuning in at midnight for this perfectly poised second leg. With a spot in Group 2 (alongside Junior, Oriente Petrolero and Leon de Huanuco) on the line. The Uruguayans travel to Porto Alegre after holding Gremio to a 2-2 draw in the first leg.

19.45 Kettering Town v Crawley Town, Blue Square Bet Premier, Premier Sports
Crawley are on the crest of a wave after an impressive run into the FA Cup Fifth Round, and the mainstream media are lapping it up. But there's no romance in the world of secret ownership, Steve Evans and snide gamesmanship, so many clued-in neutrals will be keen for Kettering to bring them down to earth.

Chris N