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Fact: Midweek Premier League Is One Of The Great Things About Being A Football Fan

PJ Browne
By PJ Browne
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For some reason, Chelsea vs Huddersfield on a Tuesday night is just more appealing than Chelsea vs Huddersfield at 12:30 on a Saturday afternoon.

Perhaps it is the surprise element of midweek football: the Tuesday afternoon realisation that there is live football to watch when you get home in the evening.

It's also guilt-free. There's that Saturday and Sunday afternoon feeling that you should be doing something better with your days off - maybe climbing a mountain or talking to your child - which is absent on a Tuesday or Wednesday. You've got a day's work done, relax and watch Steve Mounié grab a consolation goal in a 4-1 loss. Also, it's freezing outside, sit down and wonder how being manager of Arsenal hasn't made Arsene Wenger's hair greyer than it is.

Sure we have Champions League to regularly meet our appetite for football between the weekends but the novelty of Champions League has worn off.

Though recent rounds threw out upsets - Man Utd losing to Basel, Man City falling to Shakhtar - there is more certainty. The entertainment feels more likely to come from Dunphy or Souness rather than a really compelling game.

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The group stages of the Champions League have become a bit staid on the palette. It's spaghetti bolognese to midweek Premier League's Thai takeaway. The staple versus the treat.

Midweek Premier League football just seems to have a bit more madness to it. Eric Cantona kung-fu kicked a fan on a Wednesday night, Andrei Arshavin scored four against Liverpool on a Tuesday, Stan Collymore scored that late winner against Newcastle on a Wednesday.

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Under the lights, which make the games feel like more of an occasion, anything could happen. Jurgen Klopp might drop Dejan Lovren. Arsenal might implode in an even more inventive way than usual (Olivier Giroud will probably end up in goal against West Ham.) Maybe Steve Mounié will score the winner.

Even when a Wednesday night live game throws up a stinker, there could be six other live games on at the same time. The score updates from other fixtures are entertainment in themselves. And these days, you're not simply restricted to what's on Sky or BT.

There's also the promise of a bumper Match of the Day, one which finishes towards the early hours of the morning when your TV is wondering if it should be clocking out for the day. Still, you won't have had your fill until you get to Burnley vs Stoke at 1:30am.

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The deceased gap between final whistles and Gary Lineker's opening words - if you've chosen not to watch the live game earlier - means your more likely to view the games without knowing the results, a real rarity in the smartphone era.

Midweek Premier League football still feels like a novelty in a world where the league is ubiquitous. There's a nostalgia to it; like you're a 10-year-old again staying up far later than you should be to watch Des Lynam and Co.

See Also: Further Details About Manchester Derby Tunnel Scrap Have Emerged

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