Five things to watch this week, inc Premier League, King George, Darts and more
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It’s Christmas week, but before (and after) Santa slides down the chimney on Friday, we’ve got a sleigh-load of sporting brilliance to get stuck into.
Here’s what’s coming up this week…
Festive Football
Football waits for no man, including old Saint Nick in his red suit.
We start with a Premier League Monday night double-header as Burnley take on Wolves and Chelsea host West Ham.
Then it’s time for the EFL Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday and Wednesday. First up is Brentford (27/20) at home to Newcastle (2/1), with the Bees sniffing an upset, before Arsenal (21/5) look for a cup distraction from their woeful league form at home to Man City (3/5).
Stoke (5/1) take on Tottenham (1/2) on Wednesday evening, before Everton (9/4) welcome Man Utd (11/10) to Goodison Park.
Wednesday’s Football also brings us a full roster in the Scottish Premiership, and Ligue 1, plus games in Serie A and La Liga.
Ladbrokes King George VI
With December 25th right around the corner, it must mean we’re homing in on the 2020 Ladbrokes King George from Kempton.
The Boxing Day headliner has been Clan Des Obeaux’s party piece for the last two years, with Paul Nicholls’ charge romping home on both occasions.
The eight-year-old is 7/4 joint-favourite for a famous third King George on the spin, but could be up against his well-regarded stablemate Cyrname (also 7/4) on Saturday afternoon.
World Darts Championship
If Christmas is in the air, then Darts are on the Ally Pally oche. We’re halfway through the opening section of this year’s World Darts Championship, with all the big names still in the mix.
Michael van Gerwen is the 15/8 favourite, ahead of Gerwyn Price (5/1) and Peter Wright (6/1), but anything can happen at Ally Pally, with the likes of Jose de Sousa (12/1), Michael Smith (14/1) and many more capable of challenging.
The Darts continues today, tomorrow and Wednesday, before it’s traditional festive break, with play resuming on Sunday for round three and beyond.
NFL
And over in America the sport doesn’t let up either, with the NFL reaching the business end of the season.
It’s the penultimate round of the regular season, with the playoffs looming rapidly on the gridiron horizon.
Most divisions have already been decided, but it’s still all to play for in the AFC South between Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts, while it’s completely wide-open still in the NFC East.
The likes of Kansas City Chiefs (13-1), Green Bay Packers (11-3) and the New Orleans Saints (10-4) have all comfortably secured their place in the post-season, and the trio dominate the latest Super Bowl LV odds.
NBA
While the NFL homes in on the end of their season, it’s time to don the cleats for the new NBA campaign.
LeBron James guided the LA Lakers to a famous championship last term, but can the great man do it again?
The new season gets underway on Wednesday night with Golden State at Brooklyn Nets, before an LA derby with Clippers versus Lakers at the Staples Center.
All odds and markets correct as of date of publication
