Three things to look out for this weekend

1 Promotion-chasing Lincoln City must clear Cheltenham hurdle

You have to go back to the last century for the last time Lincoln were in the third tier of English football so Imps fans, who have seen far too many lows over recent years, are all set to party this weekend.

The pre-season 9-1 shots for Sky Bet League Two glory can clinch promotion, sealing a return to the third division for the first time since 1998-99.

Unbeaten in League Two since Boxing Day, Lincoln will doubtless be regarded by many as good things at home to Cheltenham but football is rarely that straightforward.

The Cheltenham side arriving at Sincil Bank are 16th in the table and going nowhere yet the Robins would be fifth in a 12-match form table.

They were as short as 13-8 for the drop at the end of October but have made massive strides under Michael Duff and will be all too keen to rain on Lincoln’s parade.

2 Draw enough for dominant Juventus to seal eighth Serie A title in a row

Juventus can lock up an eighth straight Serie A title with a point at Spal, who would be delighted to take a draw to boost their chances of avoiding relegation.

Given the benefits of a stalemate to each side, seasoned Serie A observers probably won’t be surprised to see the draw being quoted as short as 2-1.

History is certainly against the Spal win – they have managed just one in 35 top-flight meetings with Juve, and that came way back in 1957.

The Ferrera club are four points above the drop zone courtesy of three wins in their last four, two of which came against Roma and Lazio.

3 Playoff hopefuls Aston Villa and Bristol City clash in Championship

Anyone who had a nibble at Aston Villa to be promoted from the Sky Bet Championship at odds of 66-1 just six weeks ago will be taking a keen interest in their showdown with Bristol City.

This is a proper playoff tear-up with the winners set to put daylight between themselves and those chasing down a top-six spot.

Villa are fifth and now 11-4 to go up with City, a place and a point behind them, 7-1 for promotion.

Dean Smith’s Villa are on a seven-game winning streak – something Lee Johnson’s visitors also achieved from the turn of the year – and they are a shade of odds-on to see off City.

Both sets of fans have good reasons to fear the curse of the old boy. Tammy Abraham and Jonathan Kodjia, prolific goalscorers for the Robins not so long ago, now line up for Villa while Andreas Weimann, a recent Villa Park favourite, has never enjoyed a more fruitful scoring campaign than the one he is currently having at Ashton Gate.

Villa thrashed City 5-0 last season and have won six of their last seven home meetings against the Bristol mob.

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