All of the starters for the Seattle Storm watched from the bench grinning from ear to ear.

With just minutes left in the game, they could taste another championship coming their way. In the “wubble,” the WNBA bubble, for more than four months, they would soon be leaving victorious.

On Tuesday night, the Storm put on a stellar performance over the Las Vegas Aces, in a 92-59 win. Seattle swept the Aces in a five-game series at IMG Academy. The Storm went perfect in the playoffs with a 6-0 record. This championship for Seattle would tie for the most titles in WNBA history, with the Houston Comets and the Minnesota Lynx also with four championships.

The players in the “wubble” dealt with so much adversity. Many teams were not competing with their whole roster because of the coronavirus pandemic. Teams only played 22 games in the regular season with a quick turn around between each game. The league also dedicated the season to Breonna Taylor, the Say Her Name campaign and other social justice issues.

From game one of the series between the Las Vegas Aces and Seattle Storm, all eyes were on A’ja Wilson of Las Vegas. Wilson came into the series as the reigning MVP and took complete control during the regular season. She averaged more than 20 points during the regular season. Wilson is a force down low, but would she have a strong enough supporting cast to outlast this deep Storm team?

Wilson had two strong performances in the first two games of the series, but the Aces had a difficult time defending the Storm. In game three, Wilson recorded 14 points at halftime but lacked help from her teammates.

Breanna Stewart led the Storm during the series. Stewart averaged 25.7 points per game during the playoffs. She was not sure if she would even play in the 2020 season after suffering an Achilles injury in April 2019 overseas. “I know, I remember where I was last year during the WNBA Finals — I was in North Carolina with my family,” Stewart toldESPN. In addition, Stewart was the unanimous pick for the finals MVP. She worked hard to make a comeback for the season, and she did that and more.

Before the season started, the Storm were the favorites because of their full roster with many experienced players. With only four losses during the season the Storm also tied with the Aces with an 18-4 record — the best in the WNBA. The Aces won both regular-season matchups, but Sue Bird did not play in either one of the games. Even though two of Seattle’s losses came to Las Vegas, the Storm turned it up another notch during the playoffs. They swept the Minnesota Lynx in the semifinals and the first game was the closest between the two teams, 88-86, credited to Alysha Clark’s putback with seconds left in the game.

Sue Bird would be the big impact the Storm needed to win against the Las Vegas Aces. Bird told ESPN’s Mechelle Voepel, “The fact that I’ve been able to do it in different decades, with the same franchise, not many people can say that.” In Bird’s 17th season in the league, she is the one player left for the Storm that has won all four of the championships with the franchise.

Bird also battled some injuries during the shortened season with a bone bruise to her knee that caused her to miss 11 games. That would not stop her though. In game one of the finals, Bird set a new record with 16 assists, the most in a final and postseason game.

This was certainly an emotional night for Storm’s Jewell Loyd, who lost her close friend and mentor Kobe Bryant when he died earlier this year in a helicopter crash. Bryant nicknamed Loyd “Gold Mamba,” and she dedicated this championship to him and the Bryant family.

The Storm were in command during the playoffs and this championship did not come easy with all of the challenges presented throughout the season. Seattle is not looking to slow down one bit in the upcoming years, and they are going to continue chasing more rings.

The Philadelphia Eagles welcomed rookie quarterback Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals (0-2). The Eagles entered this game also at 0-2, with losses coming from the Washington Football Team and the Los Angeles Rams respectively. Both teams have high hopes for their quarterbacks. The Eagles look for Wentz to improve his recent play as he threw four interceptions prior to this meeting and has a 60 percent completion rate.  On the sideline stands the number one pick from the 2020 NFL draft, Joe Burrow. The rookie QB has impressed the league and Cincinnati by throwing just one interception on the season and five touchdowns so far.

Along with the quarterbacks, the running back names are also known very well around the league: Joe Mixon and Miles Sanders, two guys who have a very positive impact on the field and have contributed to their offenses in the past. However, this year both players are struggling to get their team on track.

Sanders has just one touchdown this year while Mixon has none. Both teams came into this game with hopes of tacking on their first win for the 2020 season.

The meeting started just like you’d expect two winless teams to start a game. At the end of the first quarter, the score was 0-0. The second quarter began with a made field goal by Jake Elliot to put Philadelphia up by 3. The Bengals narrowed the score back to 3-3 midway through the second quarter.

After another made field goal by the Eagles just a few minutes before halftime, both sides were looking for their first cross of the goal line. The Bengals drove down the field the next possession with key catches from Tyler Boyd who posted 10 receptions and 125 yards on the day. Cincinnati found themselves on the goal line after a pass interference call on Auden Tate in the endzone. The Bengals punched it in with a touchdown pass to Tee Higgins from Burrow which made the score 10-6 after the extra point. With just 16 seconds left on the clock before the half, Wentz found Greg Ward Jr. for a 29-yard touchdown pass. The Eagles went on top 13-10.

Eagles rookie draft pick Jalen Hurts made his first appearance early in the second half Sunday after a disappointing game from Wentz. His first touch of the season ended up being a 10-yard run. He was taken out after a fumble, luckily covered by the Eagles.

Jake Elliot doubled their score by 3 to 6 after he nailed a 54 yard field goal. The Bengals retaliated with another Tee Higgins touchdown near the goal line to take the lead back to 17-16. Wentz threw his first interception on the day during the following drive to LeShaun Sims.

Randy Bullock extended Cincinnati’s lead by four to 20-16 with a field goal to open the fourth quarter. The Bengals caught a break the next drive as Wentz overthrew Miles Sanders which would have been a definite touchdown. The next drive, the Bengals drove down the field with a big screen pass play from Giovani Bernard. Randy Bullock knocked in his third field goal of the day to make the score 23-16.

Wentz rushed in a touchdown and the Eagles tacked on the extra point to tie the game with 30 seconds left in the game. It was 23-23 going into overtime.

Overtime was a back and forth battle that ended in neither team’s favor. This game ended in a tie which makes the teams 0-2-1.

While Philadelphia might not have the glitz and glamour of American cities like Los Angeles and New York, it does have one thing that can’t go unnoticed: extremely passionate fan base. Whether fans are rooting for the Flyers, 76ers, Eagles or Phillies, the teams never lack support.

Still, any true Philly fan knows that this support comes intense criticism. Due to COVID restrictions, fans have been unable to attend games for most of the 2020 season. However, fans are still extremely invested in sports — with high expectations. Unfortunately, all four major teams in Philadelphia have fallen short of those hopes. Are Philly sports cursed this year, or were the expectations just too high?

One Philly team that fell short is the 76ers. After losing to a Kawhi Leonard buzzer beater in a wild game seven of the Eastern Conference Semifinals last season, there was incredible hope for the 2019-20 season. Playoff experience aside, the 76ers made a series of offseason moves to improve the team — all of which ended up backfiring in a big way.

Jimmy Butler, who the 76ers acquired in a trade during the 2019 season, left in free agency to join the Miami Heat, and led them to the 2020 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers.  It’s not clear if the 76ers offered Butler an official contract offer, but regardless, it seems as though Butler didn’t want to come back. He questioned the leadership during his time in Philly when appearing on former 76er JJ Reddick’s podcast.

“It was so different. On any given day, me as a person, as a player, I didn’t know who the f— was in charge. I think that was the biggest thing. I didn’t know what the f— to expect whenever I’d go into the gym, whenever I’m going to the game. … I think I was lost as the next motherf—er. “ said Butler.

Speaking of who is in charge, GM Elton Brands’ decision to bring back 76ers head coach Brett Brown was just one of Brand’s many questionable decisions during the offseason. Bringing back Brown this season made little sense. While it was reported that both Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid advocated for the coach to come back, players making decisions about coaching personnel is a slippery slope. Regardless, the team regressed. They went from a three seed and an Eastern Conference Finals appearance in 2018-19 to a six seed and a first-round exit, courtesy of a sweep by the Boston Celtics. It wasn’t until after this disaster season ended that Brown was finally fired.

Now, it’s on Elton Brand to find the right coach to lead this team. This past offseason, Brand signed Al Horford to a massive four-year contract extension, worth up to $109 million dollars. It’s a vast understatement to say that the signing has yet to work out so far, as Horford has struggled to be effective, especially when sharing the court with Embiid. And let’s not mention signing Tobias Harris for five years and $180 million. 76ers fans now have to wait and see what Brand does this offseason. Who will be the new coach? Will Brand make any trades to better complement the roster?

The Philly team that saw the most success this season was the Flyers. In his first season as Head Coach, Alain Vigneault led the Flyers to a 41-20 record in the regular season and the number one seed heading into the NHL Bubble. While the team showed resilience in the playoffs, falling behind 3-1 in the Eastern Conference semifinals to the New York Islanders before forcing a game seven, the Flyers ultimately couldn’t pull off a victory.

Another team with high expectations coming into the season was the Phillies. In the offseason, the Phillies brought in former Yankees skipper Joe Giradi. The Phillies also signed starting pitcher Zach Wheeler and former Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius. The Phillies were expected to be playoff contenders.

And yet, in the shortened 60 game season, the Phillies went 28-32, missing the playoffs after a horrendous 3-7 stretch in their final 10 games. GM Matt Klentak put together a team led by a bullpen that has 14 blown saves in a season of only 60 games! It’s been two years since the Phillies made a franchise-defining move by signing Bryce Harper to a $330 million contract, and they have yet to make the playoffs. This upcoming offseason will once again be critical to improve the team; fans will only get more restless as the futility continues. Hopefully, Matt Klentak will not be the one making the decisions.

To make matters worse, the Eagles are continuing their struggles from last season, starting with a score of 0-2-1 during the “easy” part of their schedule, with star QB Carson Wentz faltering. The Eagles still have a chance to escape the Philly curse this season, but early indications show that it will be a long climb as the level of competition ramps up significantly. Multiple injuries, highly questionable coaching decisions and a flawed roster form dark clouds on the horizon.

Cursed? We can’t know for sure, but maybe the prohibition on attending games in person is a blessing in disguise.

In football, sometimes just by chance, there are certain days filled with marquee matches across all of Europe’s top leagues. This weekend was a good example. Sometimes, these big games may not live up to the hype, but fortunately for us, this weekend, they definitely did, and then some. So let’s take a look at each of Europe’s top five leagues (England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France) in order to recap all the drama that occurred.

The Premier League (England)

Out of all the leagues this weekend, the Premier League was arguably the most action-packed. Not only was there a selection of high-profile matchups between big teams, but games that did not initially seem that exciting in comparison turned out to be particularly eye-catching. Reigning champions Liverpool faced off against a rejuvenated Arsenal team that look very exciting and finally seem to have a plan going forward. However, despite scoring first, Liverpool were simply too strong for Arsenal to handle, proving why they are champions.

Moving on to last year’s league runner’s up, Jamie Vardy scored 3 as Leicester City beat Manchester City 5-2, in what is no doubt the biggest shock in England this weekend. While Man City did take the lead, a defensive capitulation, a sight which is becoming alarmingly common these days, saw Leicester put 5 past the Citizens, with Brendan Rodgers’ men becoming the first side in history to score 5 against a team managed by Pep Guardiola in a single match. As a result, Pep has spent big again, buying Ruben Dias from Benfica on Sept. 29.

There definitely was not a shortage of goals in football this weekend either. Away from home at West Brom, Chelsea fell apart in the first half, finding themselves 0-3 down after 45 minutes, with Thiago Silva having an absolute nightmare of a Premier League debut. However, Lampard threw the dice and Chelsea were able to mount a spirited three-goal comeback, drawing 3-3.

Elsewhere, Wolves, a team who many predict will be a challenger for a European spot, or maybe even crack the top four, were thoroughly torn to shreds by West Ham, losing 0-4. Aston Villa, on the other hand, a team who just barely avoided relegation last season, played great and beat Fulham 3-0, as Fulham continue their horrid run of form ever since being promoted from the Championship at the end of last season.

The Premier League was not without penalty drama either as Brighton fought tooth and nail to hold Manchester United to a 2-2 draw, but 10 minutes into overtime, Bruno Fernandes slotted home the winning goal from the penalty spot shattered the hearts of Brighton fans. However, the referee controversially awarded the penalty after the final whistle had been blown, ending the match. And let’s not forget how both Everton beat Crystal Palace 2-1 and Newcastle earned a 1-1 draw with Tottenham after dubious handball decisions. But we will get to that later.

La Liga (Spain)

In Spain, this weekend was especially notable as Barcelona, Sevilla, Atletico Madrid and Elche all played their first match of the season after being given extended vacations due to how late last season ended for them.

Elche, who were newly promoted, did not have the greatest of top-flight returns as they were plastered 3-0 by Real Sociedad. The league champions of last season, Real Madrid, partly made up for their own disappointing result against Real Sociedad last week with a 3-2 win over Real Betis on Saturday, but they did so in typical Real Madrid fashion, receiving help from questionable VAR decisions. Real Betis played well and ended the half with a 2-1 lead, but in the second half, Los Blancos fought hard and equalized. A Betis red card and 30 minutes later saw Real Madrid awarded a penalty for yet another unsavory handball call, to which Sergio Ramos stepped up and scored.

While Real Madrid had to claw back from behind to get all three points, their rivals, Barcelona played much better, crushing Villarreal 4-0 with a tremendous team performance in the first half, headlined by a brace from 17-year old, Ansu Fati. While Barcelona definitely had a horrendous end to last season and an equally tumultuous summer, but if Ronald Koeman’s first match in charge is anything to go by, Barcelona looks to have put some of those problems behind them.

On to the last of Spain’s big three, Atletico Madrid gave probably the most impressive performance of any of Europe’s top teams this weekend, mercilessly smashing Granada 6-1. Granada has shocked many over the past two seasons, transforming themselves into one of the better teams in Spain. But it was the Andalusian team who found themselves shocked last Sunday after Atletico were able to dump goals in the net, in what feels like ages since the usually-defensive Diego Simeone side has scored more than two goals in a single match. Also notable, was Luis Suarez’s first-ever match in an Atletico Madrid shirt, as he came off the bench later in the match, only to score twice and provide an assist.

Serie A (Italy)

Much like the Premier League, but arguably more surprisingly, it was raining goals in Italy this weekend, a league which is stereotyped for being slow and defensively focused. The champions, Juventus, faced off against the perennially-strong Roma in what was Andrea Pirlo’s second-ever match in his managerial career. While I have no doubts that Pirlo can turn out to be the best manager in the world in a few years, his inexperience really showed here as Juve were clearly outplayed by this resolute Roma side, requiring two goals from Ronaldo to salvage a 2-2 draw.

Inter Milan, the other league title contender, had to survive a scare of their own as they had to come from behind, twice, to beat Fiorentina 4-3, in what was probably the most exciting match this weekend. Franck Ribery rolled back the years and caused Inter’s defense major problems. But ultimately it wasn’t enough as two late goals from Romelu Lukaku and Danilo D’Ambrosio, coupled with a great performance from Lautaro Martinez earlier on in the match, stole the game from Fiorentina.

Down in Southern Italy, Napoli pulled off a wonderful team performance, trashing Genoa 6-0 with Mexico’s own, Chucky Lozano even scoring twice. The goals continued to rain as the lovable Atalanta beat Torino 4-2. Meanwhile, AC Milan continue to prove that they are a robust team, beating Crotone 2-0, even without Zlatan given that he contracted Covid-19 last week.

Bundesliga (Germany)

German Football this weekend was characterized by underdogs upsetting the big boys, and we need not look farther than at the top of the pile. In what was no doubt the most shocking result in world football this weekend, Bayern Munich — the current German League Champions, German Cup Champions, Champions League Champions, Super Cup Champions, and undisputed best team in the world — were completely destroyed and humiliated by an energetic and quick Hoffenheim side lead by Andrej Kramaric. The result was so unbelievable, it seemed as if the Bayern and Hoffenheim players switched shirts before the match.

It was top to bottom domination from Hoffenheim. The fourth goal was a picture-perfect summary of how this match went. With a cheeky elastico spin, Kramaric took two Bayern defenders out of the game before the ball found the feet of Ihlas Bebou, who charged towards the Bayern goal leaving defenders slipping and sliding on the grass in his wake. Bebou was taken down by Neuer in the box, only for Kramaric to step up and bury the penalty into the upper 90 with a missile of a shot.

Of course, we cannot be too harsh on Bayern, they just came off an amazing season and are no doubt a bit fatigued. Not to mention that they just won the Super Cup a few days before and rested a few starters for this match. Bayern had an obscene undefeated streak stretching back to December of 2019, it was inevitable that Bayern would lose a game sooner or later. Still, the manner in which they lost is no less shocking.

On to the other results in Germany, Borussia Dortmund, a team who’s supporters would argue is the second-best team in Germany, did their best Bayern impression by losing 2-0 to Augsburg. While it was definitely surprising to see Augsburg beat Dortmund given that Augsburg finished only one spot above the relegation playoffs last season, it really isn’t surprising to see Dortmund lose games like this when you take into account that their team is filled with talented, but largely inexperienced young players, and as the past seasons have shown, the team as a whole lacks a strong enough winning mentality to remain consistent. As for the other team who challenge Dortmund’s spot as the second-best team in Germany, RB Leipzig found themselves dropping points as well, albeit against much stronger opposition, drawing 1-1 with Bayer Leverkusen.

As for Schalke, who used to be one of the elite clubs in Germany, they were thoroughly rinsed by Werder Bremen 3-1 as Schalke’s awful winless streak is extended to 18 matches. However, things may hopefully be on the upward for Schalke fans as manager David Wagner was sacked after this recent defeat and the club looks to hit the restart button.

Ligue 1 (France)

Compared to the rest of the leagues in Europe, Ligue 1 had a relatively quiet weekend compared to the craziness that occurred across the continent. But that’s not a slight against the French League as the standards that England, Spain, Italy and Germany set were very high these past few days. However, there were still some memorable results. Most notably, current-league leaders, Rennes, lined up against Saint-Etienne, who they were tied with at the top of the table prior to this match. However, by the end of the match, Rennes proved that they are not only the most exciting team in France right now but also the overall best team in the division stomping Saint-Etienne’s lights out, 3-0 with three beautiful goals. Last week I made the audacious prediction that Rennes will win Ligue 1 and so far they are proving me right (until next week, of course, when Rennes lose 4-0 to Reims or something and expose my terrible prediction skills).

Elsewhere in France, despite having a player sent off, Monaco were able to outscore Strasbourg and win 3-2 while Lille continued their great run of form by beating Nantes 2-0.

The New Handball Rules

Among all the matches this weekend, one constant issue that appeared across the continent was the issue with controversial handballs that led to penalties. Following a slew of new changes to the game that started with the introduction of VAR (Video Assistant Referee), the International Football Association or IFAB, modified the laws surrounding handballs with the new law taking effect this season. The modification was implemented in order to avoid unnecessary controversy that accompanies the inherently contentious issue of handballs. The new law now states that for a handball to be given, it no longer matters whether or not the player intentionally handled the ball, but virtually any touch of the ball with the hand or arm is foul unless the player’s arm is in a natural position. However, what constitutes a “natural position” for the arm is equally controversial as IFAB ruled unnatural position of the arm means the arm raised above the head.

While the rule was meant to clear up confusion surrounding the ever-existing issue of handballs, it only did the opposite and this weekend was a prime example. In at least three matches, three high profile penalties were given due to very questionable handballs to the fury of players, managers, fans, journalists and commentators alike.

As Tottenham led Newcastle with a close 1-0 lead into injury time on Sunday, both Eric Dier and Andy Carroll leapt for 50-50 ball. Carroll won the ball and headed it downwards, hitting Dier’s arm in the process. While Dier’s arm was above his head, he was leaping into the air. How are you supposed to jump without moving your arms? In fact, Dier was around 6 inches away from Carroll, how could he possibly move his arms out of the way in time? Not to mention that his back was turned to Carroll; he didn’t even know the ball was flying towards his arm. Nonetheless, Newcastle was awarded the penalty

Only the day before, another similar instance occurred when Crystal Palace hosted Everton. At around the 30-minute mark, the scores were tied 1-1 as Richarlison collected the ball in Crystal Palace’s penalty box. Palace defender, Joel Ward, was covering him, but as Richarlison turned with the ball, he attempted a cross that hit Ward’s arm. Again, the ball clearly touched Ward’s hand, but he was so close to Richarlison, how would he possibly move his arm out of the way in time? If you look closely, Ward even tried to move his arm yet the ball was moving so fast and he was so close to Richarlison that it smacked off his arm anyway. Despite the commentators agreeing it was a harsh call, the penalty was awarded to Everton regardless.

This issue isn’t unique to England either as another incidence happened in Spain when Real Betis faced off against Real Madrid. With the scores tied at 2-2, Real Betis were down a man due to a red card but were still holding on. That was until the 79th minute when Borja Mayoral received the ball and raced into the Betis penalty box. Betis defender, Marc Bartra, was able to get between Mayoral and the ball, but when Mayoral attempted to shoot, Bartra was pushed over and as he tumbled to the ground the ball bounced off his arm. First off, this should have been called back for a foul as Mayoral had pushed Bartra, but beyond that, how exactly was Bartra supposed to move his hand out of the way as he was falling towards the ball when it was literally 2 inches away from his body? Despite protests from the Betis players, a penalty was still given to Real Madrid.

In each of these three instances, the ensuing penalty from the handball had a massive impact on the match. Both Real Madrid and Everton scored the eventual match-winning goal with the penalty and Newcastle was gifted a goal that denied Tottenham a win. So the effects are visibly large. In my opinion, we should revert back to the old handball rules from around 2015 and prior. These rules stated that for a penalty to be awarded on the basis of handball, the player had to have either deliberately handled the ball, or his arm was in an obscenely unnatural position. Distance also plays a factor too as when the ball strikes a player’s arm in close proximity, it won’t be awarded. Overall, handball will always be an inevitable part of football that you cannot avoid, it is just a shame that all the fuss around poorly written laws took away much of the media attention from a wonderful weekend of football.

The 2020 NFL has been like no other season before. Due to the COVID 19- Pandemic, teammates didn’t get to practice and be together until the beginning of August. Pre-season was canceled and instead, from training camp, the league went right into the regular season which started in September. As expected, a majority of the teams looked relatively rusty, while others, like the Chiefs, looked like they hadn’t missed a step. Some teams, unfortunately, looked much worse than others. One of those teams includes the Philadelphia Eagles.

To be fair, the Eagles once again have been decimated by injuries before the season even began. Whether it was starting guard Brandon Brooks going down for the season with a torn Achilles, starting left tackle Andre Dillard going down with a torn bicep, first-round pick Jalen Reagor missing the next 6-8 weeks because of a UCL tear in his thumb or wide receiver Alshon Jeffrey starting the season on the injured reserve, the list goes on and on. Despite the injuries, there isn’t an excuse for the sloppy performances the Eagles have shown in the first two games of the season. The first game of the season came on Sept. 13 against the Washington Football Team. At one point in the game, the Eagles were up 17-0. The Eagles never scored again, and Washington scored 27 unanswered points to win the game.

After starting the game off strong, quarterback Carson Wentz looked lost and committed costly turnovers. However, the loss wasn’t entirely his fault as the offensive line gave up a Week One league-high 8 sacks. To allow that many sacks in an NFL game is inexcusable. There would not have been as many sacks had Wentz thrown the ball away when under pressure instead of just taking the sack. At least after the game, Wentz took some responsibility. ”I put our defense in a bad spot a couple occasions,” said Wentz. “I gotta be better. I’ll own that.”

In Week Two against the Rams, the offensive line was much better, but Wentz looked even worse. The defense also struggled mightily giving up 37 points. Jared Goff picked apart the Eagles secondary, throwing for 267 yards and three touchdown passes. The run defense wasn’t much better, giving up 191 total rushing yards to the Rams’ second and third-string backs (starter Cam Akers was out with a rib injury). Wentz had a pretty dreadful day for the Eagles throwing for 242 yards and two interceptions, the second consecutive game he has suffered two interceptions. It’s hard to believe that the offense has struggled this much when there were so many investments made this offseason (three wide receivers taken in the draft) and guys returning from injury such as veteran like Desean Jackson, who was out most of last season but is now back in the fold.

The Eagles season lies in the hands of Carson Wentz. If he doesn’t improve from the past two weeks, then the Eagles are going to be in for a very long season. Head Coach Doug Pederson acknowledged in a press conference this week that Wentz has “regressed” so far this season. We will not be surprised to eventually see second-round draft pick rookie quarterback Jalen Hurts replace Wentz at some point this season if his regression continues.

With the 2020/21 season kicking off or already underway all across the world, pundits, YouTube commentators, journalists and fans alike have begun writing up their predictions for how the season will end up. So, with everyone and their mother chipping in with season predictions, I thought it was time for me to throw my hat into the ring. In this article, I’m going to give my predictions for each of Europe’s Top Five Leagues and who is going to be champions. I’m also going to predict the winners of the Champions League, Europa League, MLS Cup, Copa Libertadores as well as a few bonus predictions.

Premier League (England) – Manchester City

Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool side ran away with the title last season, and while I think they will definitely put up a good fight this year, I don’t think it will be enough to topple Manchester City. The title challenge will be between solely Manchester City and Liverpool as the rest of the pack is nowhere near the level of these giants, but when you compare Liverpool and Manchester City, the Citizens have probably the deepest squad in the world while Liverpool’s team has been extremely fatigued after playing at such a high level for the past year and a half. Not to mention that Pep and his boys will also be highly motivated to make up for last season which was relatively disappointing, and ended in embarrassing fashion.

La Liga (Spain) – Atletico Madrid

While this may be a controversial pick, I think this is the year that Atletico Madrid will yet again break the Real Madrid-Barcelona dominance just as they did six years ago. Real Madrid are the reigning champions and while they have a capable squad, I just feel that their attack will still fail to click. Eden Hazard will struggle to fit into the side, and they will continue to rely solely on Karim Benzema for goals. Barcelona, the Perennial La Liga winners, just came off one of their worst seasons in history. While hiring Ronald Koeman is a step in the right direction, there still exist major holes in the defense, not to mention the incompetent board remains for at least a year more.

Last season, Diego Simeone’s Atletico side was caught in a transition phase where many veterans left and new blood came in. I think this season, the new players will fully settle in and Simeone will be able to find that right balance between a strong defense and an expansive attack. Atletico Madrid’s title challenges rely heavily on the signing of Edinson Cavani, or at least another top striker, however. Though, I think they eventually will sign a new striker before the window closes.

Serie A (Italy) – Inter Milan

Again, I am going for the controversial but also more exciting pick, and this time I believe that Inter Milan will break Juventus’ nine-year title-winning streak. Although this choice may not be as shocking as it initially may seem. Juventus sacked Maurizio Sarri after a subpar season last year, yet they hired former player, Andrea Pirlo as his replacement, in what will be his first-ever managerial tenure. While I think Pirlo has the potential to be a great manager, his first season will inevitably see a few teachable moments and some ups and downs.

On the other hand, Inter have seen a meteoric rise since Antonio Conte was hired last season, and only look to keep going up. They heavily strengthened in the transfer window, adding to their already formidable team, creating a squad that is worthy of Europe’s elite. Conte dominated Serie A with Juventus a decade ago, and this year I think the animated Italian will add yet another Scudetto to his personal trophy cabinet.

Bundesliga (Germany) – Bayern Munich

In probably the most predictable league in Europe this year, it is extremely hard to not see Bayern steamroll all opposition and claim another Bundesliga title. Bayern Munich is by far the best team in the world, in fact, this squad is one of the best teams I have ever seen and they just came off a Treble winning season where they brushed aside all of Europe’s top sides. So to think they can’t do the same in Germany, against weaker opponents, is a dangerous wager to play. No one else in Germany looks like they can even touch the Bavarians.

Teams like Bayer Leverkusen, Wolfsburg and Borussia Moenchengladbach are decent but far too inconsistent. Borussia Dortmund have a surplus of young talent but the team lacks a winning mentality and collapses every time they face elite opponents. RB Leipzig is a great team, yet they just sold their best player in Timo Werner, to Chelsea. Even with Werner, Leipzig would still pale in comparison to Bayern. So, with that in mind, I think Bayern will waltz to their eighth consecutive Bundesliga title, probably with a lead-point gap in the double digits.

Ligue 1 (France) – Stade Rennais

Yep, you read that right. I predict that Rennes will win the 2020/21 Ligue 1 title. Of course, I could be like almost everyone else and predict PSG to win a consecutive fourth title, and while there is a good chance they could be right, that’s an exceptionally boring prediction, and I don’t like boring. Not only that, but there is also some credence to this claim. PSG have already started off very poorly in the league, and true, we are only a few matches into the season, but I think there is evidence that PSG’s loss in the Champions League Final may have had done major morale damage to a squad that has struggled with mentality problems in the past. We saw the same thing happen to Juventus after losing the 2017 Champions League Final, and, if not for a late push at the end of the season, Napoli would’ve beaten them to the title.

On the flip side, Rennes have a respectable squad with talented players like Steven Nzonzi, M’Baye Niang and Eduardo Camavinga, who is one of the most talented young players in the world. In fact, a large part of Rennes’ squad are youth players with great potential. At the time of writing this, Rennes sit joint-top of the Ligue 1 table. Yes, we are obviously only four matches into the season but so far, they have brushed aside some of the stronger opponents in France while playing some great football. Sure, Rennes isn’t bursting at the seams with world-class talent and all their players are unknown names, but so was Monaco at the beginning of the 2016/17 season and Montpellier at the beginning of 2011/12, and they both famously ended up as champions of France, (Yes, you have permission to call me a clown when the season ends and PSG won the title with a 25-point gap while Rennes finish 12th).

MLS Cup (USA & Canada) – Philadelphia Union

In a season that has been reformatted and mixed around a few times, I think this year will offer the Philadelphia Union their first chance at winning silverware. Jim Curtin has brought this team from a midtable mediocrity to title contenders and with a multifaceted attack headlined by Sergio Santos, Kacper Przybylko and others. With their continually competent midfield, tough defense and the ever-present savior, Andre Blake, in goal, I think Jim Curtain’s work will finally pay off this year. The Union are currently in a close second in both the Eastern Conference as well as in the overall MLS table. After a good showing at the MLS is Back Tournament, where they reached the Semifinals, I think the Union will be able to build off that good tournament performance and guide themselves to victory in the playoffs.

Champions League (Europe) – Manchester City

Tournaments like the Champions League are extremely hard to predict given that it’s a tournament that spans over the entirety of the season with massive gaps in between games. For example, a team could start the season very poorly, but due to favorable draw coupled with a good run of form at just the right moments, they could end up as champions (i.e. Real Madrid in 2016). As a result of this, these predictions tend to be very inaccurate. I mean who would’ve thought Bayern would end up as dominant champions back in August of 2019? But alas, I will still try my best. And my gut tells me that this is the year that Pep Guardiola finally gets everything right and wins his first Champions League trophy since his Barcelona days nearly a decade ago. In recent times, both Pep and Man City have been notoriously unlucky in this competition, but I think this will be the year everything goes right for them.

Europa League (Europe) – Benfica

Just as with the Champions League, the Europa League is hard to predict for those same reasons. But, the Europa League is arguably even harder to predict given that the third placed teams in the Champions League groups drop down into the knockout rounds of the Europa League. So a big portion of the title contenders may not even be in the competition yet. That being said, my pick for this season’s champions is Benfica, given that they do not qualify for the Champions League via playoffs, which looks likely they may not.

The Portuguese giants have silently won this year’s summer transfer window, bringing in a plethora of talent for mostly low prices. Benfica already had a good squad beforehand but now they quietly are one of the best teams in Europe after bringing in the likes of Everton, Jan Vertonghen and Pedrinho while still possessing very good but relatively unknown players such as Pizzi, Rafa Silva and Alex Grimaldo. However, the best move they made may not even be a player but instead their new coach, Jorge Jesus, who just recently conquered Brazil and the rest of South America with Flamengo. Benfica is a team to watch out for this year and I think they have it in them to win some major silverware.

Copa Libertadores (South America) – Palmeiras

Due to the aforementioned departure of Jorge Jesus, I do not think Flamengo will be able to retain their title after their dominant win in 2019. But that isn’t a slight against the Rio-based club, given that no team has been able to successfully defend a Copa Libertadores title in over 20 years. However, I do believe that the trophy will remain in Brazil, with this season’s champions being Palmeiras. The Periquitos are not fancied by many to win the tournament, but I think that they possess a solid enough squad with good balance and depth that can survive the year.

In the middle of the park, they have a resolute midfield with the likes of Ramires, Lucas Lima and the tough captain, Felipe Melo; and in goal they have the reliable Weverton occupying the sticks. Up top, Luiz Adriano will prove to be highly prolific and his goals will propel them to victories. In fact, he already has 11 goals in all competitions this season, including four in the Copa Libertadores, making him the second top goal scorer. Palmeiras may not be the most popular team, nor do they have a plethora of superstars but they have a hard-working and determined team, which in my opinion, is enough to see them crowned champions of South America.

Bonus Predictions

In this section, I will go through a few random predictions for the season. There really is no structure or order to these picks, they are just some things I think will happen in 2020/21, and some may be a little less serious than others.

One particular prediction for this year is who will be the young breakout star. Last year, Erling Haland lit up the stage, becoming one of the most sought after players in the world. The year before it was Jadon Sancho. However, this year I think the breakout star will be Everton Soares, otherwise known as Everton Cebolinha for his onion-shaped head. The Brazilian winger was arguably the best player outside of Europe over the past 18 months and he finally got his transfer to Europe as Benfica bought him from Gremio last month, where he won the Copa Libertadores as well several major trophies in Brazil. The only surprise is that Everton didn’t get a European move sooner. After Neymar Jr. was ruled out of the 2019 Copa America with injury, Everton slotted into his spot on the left wing and gave one of the best individual tournament performances I’ve ever seen as Brazil won the tournament on home soil. Very few players can step in for Neymar and match his ability, so if Everton can replicate that form in Europe, he can easily take his career to an even higher level.

My next prediction may be a little out there, but I think there is a lot of value behind the statement, “go big or go home,” so just hear me out. In the last two Champions League seasons, the reigning champions have been eliminated in the Round of 16 by an unfancied opponent. In 2019, Real Madrid got absolutely torn to shreds by Ajax. Sure Ajax is a good team, but no one was expecting them to be that good. In the 2020 season, Atletico Madrid pulled the rug out from underneath Liverpool, and while Atletico Madrid have been one of the best teams in the world as of late, last season was a transition year for them and no one expected them to beat Liverpool in the way they did. So for this season, I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that Bayern Munich will be eliminated in the 2021 Champions League Round of 16 by Chelsea. Yes, I know I just went on a tirade talking about how scary Bayern is and how they crush teams for fun, but even great teams have bad days or poor runs of form. Just look at Barcelona’s Champions League elimination in 2016 or even Liverpool last season. And Chelsea have done some major business in the transfer window, strengthening in almost every area of the squad. While I do not think it will be enough to win the Premier League, they are primed and ready for a deep run in the Champions League.

For my final prediction, I am going to talk about the Ballon d’Or which was unfortunately canceled for 2020. Even though every major league in Europe was able to finish or wrap up their league campaigns in some way or form, France Football decided to cancel the 2020 Ballon d’Or for some strange reason, to the outcry of thousands of fans. However, if the Ballon d’Or wasn’t canceled, I would think that this year it would’ve gone to Robert Lewandowski with Lionel Messi coming in second and Cristiano Ronaldo in third. The Polish striker starred for Bayern Munich as they won a historical treble but individually, Lewandowski had a gargantuan year, scoring 55 goals in only 47 games in all competitions as well recording nine assists in what was no doubt his best-ever season. While Lewandowski is obviously a world-class player, he lives within the Messi-Ronaldo era and this was probably his only chance to win the Ballon d’Or and, unfortunately, he will not have the chance to do so. In my opinion, he is the only player not named Lionel or Cristiano that was deserving of the Ballon d’Or since Kaka all the way back in 2007.

Conclusion

So all in all, these are my predictions for the 2020/21 season. I have no doubt that at least half of these will be wrong, some I bet, will have completely missed the mark. But that is perfectly okay, football can be very unpredictable at times, but this is one of the reasons we love it so much. And as a disclaimer, given the availability of channels here in the U.S., I am not able to watch as much Copa Libertadores. And while I am a proud American, I don’t really follow the MLS as much as I really should. So if those predictions are obscenely wrong that is the reason why. So anyway, I am very excited for the 2020/21 season, and it will definitely be very interesting to go back and look at all these predictions when its all said and done to see if the season ended up as we thought it would.

The Philadelphia 76ers have begun their opening-round playoff series against their bitter rival, the Boston Celtics. Despite winning the season series 3-1, the 76ers have struggled against the Celtics in the first two games of the series.

Obviously, this postseason is different than all others, but something that remains the same is that the 76ers are plagued with significant injuries. This year, it is Ben Simmons. Simmons, who injured his left knee against the Washington Wizards, has been deemed out for the season, and his loss has been felt immediately.

No 76er has guarded Celtics star Jayson Tatum more than Ben Simmons. Tatum scored over 30 points in games 1 and 2, setting a new postseason career-high in each game, and led the Celtics to victory. When the teams matched up in the regular season, Simmons was able to handle Tatum, but the Sixers have no answer for a player who has been a thorn in the side of the organization since that Markelle Fultz trade with Boston.

Game 1 was close. The Sixers got down but were able to claw back and make it a contest, even holding the lead in the fourth quarter. The game was close down the stretch, but Tobias Harris disappeared and Joel Embiid was gassed after carrying the team all night long. Tatum and budding star Jaylen Brown led the Celtics past the Sixers by a score of 109-101.

If there were any positives from game 1, they were all thrown away after game 2.

Despite how badly they played, the Sixers actually led after the first quarter in game 2. But that was the end of the positives. Tobias Harris and Al Horford, the Sixers two biggest free-agent signings, stunk. They were absolutely terrible. With Simmons out, we expected Harris to take the reigns and deliver what his contract deems he should, but he did nothing of the sort. Harris did not just disappear. Instead, he made his presence felt with missed shot after a missed shot. Embiid put up what felt like the most worthless 34 points in a game where the 76ers yet again, could not stop Jayson Tatum.

It has become apparent to everyone now that the Philadelphia 76ers need significant changes. This starts at the top. Firing Brett Brown is not enough. Elton Brand needs to be let go; ownership needs to look at different options moving forward, including one where they sell the team. If not, the Philadelphia 76ers will be stuck in mediocrity for years to come and will waste the talents of the best big man in the NBA, Joel Embiid.

If these past two games have shown us anything so far, it’s that the Sixers need Ben Simmons, and all of the trade Ben Simmons talk is false. Simmons is one of, if not the best defender in the NBA. Want to question his value to the team, look at game 2 where the Sixers led by 13 at one point and lost 128-101.

Game 3 is on Friday at 6:30 p.m. on TNT