Sporting Life pick out five betting highlights for the week ahead
by Sporting LifeEvery week throughout the year, Sporting Life will pick out five highlights so you never miss a beat.
Our writers will provide all of the key information such as TV channels and kick-off times, plus the latest odds from Sky Bet and, finally, their own unmissable verdict.
We continue with five sporting highlights for the week ahead.
Racing - Caspian Gold Cup
When: Saturday
Where: Cheltenham
TV: ITV & Racing TV
It's a big two-day meeting at Cheltenham with the main betting race being Saturday's Caspian Gold Cup. Riders Onthestorm is favourite for Nigel Twiston-Davies having impressed when winning at Aintree last time.
Cepage chased him home at Liverpool and is next in the market here while Kalashnikov, touched off by Oldgrangewood when switching back to handicap company at Newbury last week, is another big player.
Happy Diva beat Brelan D'As in a thrilling duel for the BetVictor Gold Cup last month and they are on course to clash again in a wide-open heat.
Snooker - Scottish Open
When: Monday to Sunday
Where: Glasgow
TV: Eurosport & Quest
The snooker circus heads to Glasgow this week as Mark Allen defends the Scottish Open title he claimed last year.
Allen defeated Shaun Murphy in a brilliant final 12 months ago and a last-four finish at the recent UK Championship suggests he can go very close again.
With world number one Judd Trump smarting from his early exit in York and the likes of John Higgins and Mark Selby also heading to Scotland, we should be in for another cracking week on the green baize.
Football - Champions League
When: Tuesday/Wednesday December 10/11
TV: BT Sport
It’s decision time in the Champions League as we enter the last round of group fixtures with still plenty left to play for as we only know half of the last 16 line-up so far. That includes defending champions Liverpool, who need to avoid defeat away at free-scoring Salzburg to secure their place in the knockout round.
Chelsea also need just a win at home against French side Lille to make it through the group stages under Frank Lampard. Lille have just a point so far in the competition and, the fact Valencia are playing at Ajax gives the Blues every opportunity of making it safely through what was a tough draw.
Tottenham head to Bayern Munich knowing both sides are safely through and that they can finish no higher than second place behind the German giants so expect changes in that game. The same goes for Manchester City as they’re already confirmed as group winners ahead of their trip to Croatia to face Dinamo Zagreb.
Football - Premier League
When: Saturday/Sunday December 14/15
TV: BT Sport & Sky Sports
League leaders Liverpool get an early opportunity to extend their advantage once again as they take on bottom side Watford in Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off at Anfield. The Hornets have one win this season and can be backed at 11/1 to upset the Reds, this is the definition of a home banker.
Second-placed Leicester will also be on plenty of coupons as they host struggling Norwich, who are also an 11/1 chance to cause a massive shock at the King Power. Elsewhere on Saturday, Southampton face West Ham in the late game and Sheffield United host Aston Villa in what promises to be an exciting clash between two newly-promoted sides.
Sunday has a couple of big games on offer as Manchester United and Everton clash at Old Trafford with now both sides bouncing under the guidance of club legends after Duncan Ferguson led Everton’s win over Chelsea and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer watched his side beat Tottenham and Man City in a week!
The other big game comes at the Emirates with Arsenal hosting a deflated Manchester City side who will be desperate to get back to winning ways after that stinging defeat at Old Trafford – the main question is though is it already too late to catch Liverpool?
Darts - World Championship
When: December 13-January 1
Where: Alexandra Palace
TV: Sky Sports Darts
Forget the turkey, it's the tungsten that means Christmas is just around the corner, as the giants of the oche return to Ally Pally for the World Darts Championship for another year. Michael van Gerwen will headline the opening night and he's unsurprisingly the tournament favourite as he looks to retain the title he won on New Year's Day against Michael Smith.
Defeated finalist Smith is among the leading fancies to go one better this time around, with the likes of the in-form Gerwyn Price, former champion Rob Cross and the colourful Peter Wright also among the front-runners for the Sid Waddell Trophy.
There's a long way to go though before 96 players are whittled down to one on New Year's Day after 16 days of darting excellence and 28 sessions, with two sessions on both Saturday and Sunday this weekend featuring all the big names including Raymond van Berneveld.
The 52-year-old is bidding goodbye to the world of professional darts and it's sure to be an emotional occasion when the five-time world champion takes to the oche on Saturday night - hopefully for his legion of Barney Army fans, not for the last time.