Bordeaux v Celtic Network 2, 7.45
Celtic manager Martin O'Neill has a major injury headache ahead of tonight's game with Bordeaux, with striker Chris Sutton struggling to be fit. Sutton suffered a knock to the left ankle during Saturday's victory over Dundee United and is struggling to shake it off in time for the second round first leg tie.
"Chris Sutton is a concern," said O'Neill yesterday. "He hurt himself on Saturday and it's slowly getting better. We will wait until the last possible minute to decide whether he can play or not."
The Celtic manager could opt to switch Didier Agathe from his current position wide on the left to play alongside Swedish international Henrik Larsson. Tommy Johnson is also an option, but O'Neill admitted his lack of firstteam football was a problem.
The French side's coach Elie Baup tried to take some of the pressure off his own side by heaping praise on Celtic, labelling their displays as "irresistible" and "Latin". But the Celtic manager warned his players not to be "fooled" by the noises coming from the Bordeaux camp and told them to concentrate on taking a good result back to Glasgow.
Liverpool v Slovan Liberec. BBC1, 8.05
Gerard Houllier has the luxury of a fit-again Robbie Fowler to partner Emile Heskey up front, so Michael Owen will take no part in tonight's proceedings against the Czech Republic club.
"Michael will not be involved against the Czechs," said Houllier. "We are being cautious over his injury. He is medically okay, and would have been on the bench, but when he resumed training this week he felt a tiredness, stiffness in his legs and I decided to keep him out of this game."
With the club facing five crucial games now in less than three weeks - two UEFA matches, a derby game with Everton, a League Cup tie at home to Chelsea and a league clash at Leeds - Owen will certainly be needed and used in the coming weeks.
Houllier is aware that his side are expected to beat the provincial Czech side, who play at a small stadium in the north of the country near the Polish border, and will have to erect temporary floodlighting when Liverpool visit in a fortnight. A comfortable lead from the first leg would take the sting out of a partisan crowd in unusual surroundings in the second match.
