When news came out this afternoon that Celtic’s fourth-round tie against Rangers had been moved forward a day, many fans may have been left confused as to why the kick-off time could be pushed forward to later in the day.
Instead, we have effectively switched places with Aberdeen and Livingston who will be playing their tie at 5:30 instead.
Updated fixture details for this weekend's Fourth Round ties have now been confirmed.
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The reason that the Glasgow Derby likely won’t have been chosen for that time could have been for several reasons.
Of course, there is the usual response when it comes to this fixture that police wouldn’t have allowed the game to take place later in the day due to the possibility of fans clashing.
However, the key reason looks to be purely down to viewing figures.
At the same time on Saturday, Manchester City will face Chelsea in the FA Cup. So, it looks like Premier Sports have found the best available slot, the following day in order to maximise the viewing figures instead of clashing with a huge English cup semi-final.
In an ideal world, it would have been good to see this fixture become a late kick-off once again. However, as most things are in football nowadays, it is all down to making money and being a business.
