???? ON THE TUBE TONIGHT-

(all times CLT)

Shahid Original series Bimbo combines the best of comedy and thriller: The new show also combines a great cast of Ahmed Malek, Huda El Mufti, and Wegz — who debuted his surprising talent for acting. The story follows Malek’s character Bimbo who works as a trafficker of illicit substances in Egypt. When Bimbo is robbed, he promises to pay back his debt in a month and sets off to distribute across Cairo as quickly as he can. He soon recruits Gaber — a slightly lost Upper Egyptian man played by Wegz — to help him in his venture. However, Bimbo must have crossed a black cat at one point, because luck is never on his side and the misfortunes he faces create a comedic plot line throughout the show. The pair soon get roped into a detective role as well after befriending a popular influencer (played by Huda El Mufti) who is being threatened by ‘safa7 el influencers.’ The show is full of real-life local influencers who make guest appearances throughout the episodes as the ‘safa7’ blackmails them and they seek the help of Bimbo and Gaber.

⚽ Tottenham will clash with Chelsea in the first leg of the semi-finals of the League Cup today at 9:45pm. The Spurs reached the match after defeating West Ham in the quarter-finals, while Chelsea eliminated Brentford.

The second match of the final should be determined by Arsenal’s match with Liverpool tomorrow at 9:45pm, but the match could be postponed following a covid-19 outbreak among the Liverpool team.

The round of 32 of the Copa del Rey Cup will kick off in Spain today. We recommend watching: Linares Deportivo vs. Barcelona (8:30pm today), Alquiano vs. Real Madrid (10:30pm today), and Rayo Majadahonda vs. Atlético Madrid (10:30pm tomorrow).

Serie A: A new round of the Italian League will begin on Thursday. The most prominent matches: Bologna vs. Inter Milan (1:30 pm), Milan vs Roma (7:30pm), and Juventus vs Napoli (9:45pm). You can watch the matches on YouTube without charge.

What to watch on Friday: The FA Cup kicks off on Friday with a match between Manchester City and Swindon Town in the third round of the tournament at 10pm. Shortly before that, the match between Bayern Munich and Borussia Moenchengladbach in the German League will start at 9:30pm.

La Liga returns on Saturday for gameweek 21, which will witness the anticipated match between Real Madrid and Barcelona (time still TBD). Al-Merengue, the leaders of the league, will meet with Valencia in an important match at 10pm on Saturday evening, and before that, the Blaugrana will face Granada at 7:30pm.

There are 21 matches on Saturday in the third round of the FA Cup. The most exciting, in our opinion: Leicester City vs. Watford (5pm), West Bromwich vs. Brighton (5pm), Chelsea vs. Chesterfield (7:30pm).

Buckle up for Afcon kicking off next week as Salah and Trezeguet are back in town to train with the national team: International pros Mohamed Salah and Mahmoud Trezeguet will be playing with the Egyptian national team at the African Nations Championship in Cameroon, which gets underway next Sunday, according to Filgoal. Egypt will kick off its matches in the tournament with a strong confrontation against Nigeria at 6pm on Tuesday, 11 January, before meeting Guinea-Bissau on Saturday, 15 January and Sudan on Wednesday, 19 January. The Liverpool star said on Twitter today that the path to walking away with the championship title is not easy, and called on the Egyptian public to support the team.

TRANSFER MARKET LATEST- And while Mo Salah is busy at Afcon, Liverpool might sign Arnaut Danjuma in a huge EUR 36 mn transaction, bringing him on as an alternative for Sadio Mane and Salah, reports Fan Nation. Three Premier League clubs, Chelsea, West Ham, and Newcastle, are reportedly interested in signing current Everton defender Lucas Digne, according to Sky Sports. Man United’s 26-year-old Anthony Martial seems like he might also get a pick of clubs to join, with Barcelona the latest to show interest in the striker, according to The Mirror. Milan and Newcastle are both reportedly racing to get Lille defender Sven Botman — who has a market value of EUR 30 mn — on their teams, reports Chronicle. Meanwhile, Brighton signed Poland midfielder Kacper Kozlowski for EUR 8 mn, reports The Guardian.

???? OUT AND ABOUT-

(all times CLT)

The Cosmos Cinema Tour promises a tour through Cairo from the cinematic side, visiting shooting locations, cinemas, film studios, as well as foodie destinations. The tour will take place on Saturday from 11am to 5pm.

Latin Love Dance School is organizing an SBK practice night at their studio in New Cairo on Saturday at 8pm.

Cairo Jazz Club is acting as a host to Shereen Abdo's Sultana project on Saturday at 9pm. The Sultana project aims to present Egyptian shaabi songs in a traditional way.

???? UNDER THE LAMPLIGHT-

True events come to life in this retelling of a cave rescue: Aquanaut: The Inside Story of the Thai Cave Rescue, penned by leader of the daring underwater rescue mission Rick Stanton and author Karen Dealy, details the 2018 story of a 12-member boys’ soccer team and their coach disappearing into the Tham Luang Cave in Thailand. It was up to retired British firefighter Stanton — who just happened to have some diving gear — to save the day. The story retells the race against time as Stanton and his partner John Volanthen embarked on this rescue mission and all the possible routes they could have taken. Rescue organizers, which soon swelled to a group of 10k people, had contemplated, among other possible scenarios, leaving the team in the underwater cave for months until the flood waters subsided at the end of the monsoon season. In the end, the rescuers sedated the boys and carried them out as fast as possible. Several people died during the hazardous mission, but the team and the coach were finally brought out to safety.