data-mm-id=”_df151nslj”>If it's late enough to get reminders about Christmas– and, oh boy, are they out there– it's perfectly fine to start thinking about the NFL playoffs, even with only four games off the docket for most teams. However, one game could be the difference between playing for a Super Bowl trophy or watching it on TV. Thus, here are the four September matchups that may have defined what the field will look like come January. Detroit Lions v Arizona Cardinals / Christian Petersen/Getty ImagesWeek 1: Lions 27, Cardinals 27The Lions were one of the NFL's handful of unbeatens before they lost in a tightly-contested matchup with Kansas City last week. You'd be hard-pressed to call them "perfect", however, especially after Week 1's unusual case.Even Detroit decency can't be unblemished by typical silliness. In an opening weekend visit to Glendale, the Lions blew a 17-0 lead before outlasting Arizona in overtime for a tie that felt more like a loss. They went on to make up for the Week 1 heartbreak with inspiring wins against contenders from Philadelphia and Los Angeles, and next find themselves in a head-to-head battle with Green Bay after a bye week. Assuming they keep up the pace, how large will that tie loom in the future? Just last season, a tie kept the Lions' Northern brethren from Minnesota out of the wild card spot, as an 8-7-1 tally was no match for the 9-7 accumulated by Philadelphia. The Lions are already on the outside looking in of the current playoff picture, a half-game behind a group of 3-1 teams. Week 2: Colts 19, Titans 17A game that could well be better remembered for literally fiery antics, this game could end up mattering quite a bit when it comes to the jam-packed AFC South race. It also may have been the kick the shellshocked Colts needed to know they could contend in the wake of Andrew Luck's sudden departure. Indianapolis had previously kept pace on the road with the Chargers, and earned their first win of the season against the Titans. Offense was at a bit of a premium, as neither team eclipsed 300 yards, but a strong defensive effort from Indy picked up the key victory. Tennessee had just 243 yards and allowed four sacks in defeat.The AFC South is currently in a state Thanos the Mad Titan would love: perfectly balanced. Each team sits at 2-2, and the Colts were able to pick up a big win against one of those squads, which could come up pick as the playoff picture only gets more convoluted the deeper we go. Week 3: Chiefs 33, Ravens 28Two weeks ago, the Baltimore Ravens appeared to be on cruise control when it came to the AFC North. They were sitting at 2-0 after taking care of business against Miami and Arizona while the rest of the division was imploding. The Browns and Bengals were doing Browns and Bengals things, and the Steelers had lost Ben Roethlisberger for the season. One loss was all it took to narrow the division up.Lamar Jackson looked human after two weeks of strong play, completing only 22-of-43 passes. The Ravens led 6-0 after the first quarter, but 23 unanswered Kansas City points put them in an unescapable halftime hole. It was at least encouraging to keep pace with the mighty Chiefs on the road, but the exposed Ravens defense then went on to allow 40 more points in a loss to Cleveland the week after. The Chiefs, meanwhile, kept pace in the race for conference and league supremacy with New England. The Ravens now sit in a first-place deadlock with the Browns, and the Steelers are only one game back. Moral victories are nice, but they don't go in the win column.Philadelphia Eagles v Green Bay Packers / Quinn Harris/Getty ImagesWeek 4: Eagles 34, Packers 27Thursday Night Football games are kind of like packs of Starburst: you deal with a lot of unsavory yellow or orange pieces before you get a tasty pink one. This game indeed was a pink one, and could wind up playing big dividends for the victorious Eagles. Surprisingly sitting at 1-2 early in the year, the Eagles got themselves right back into the playoff picture with this win. Say what you will about the team, but when led by Doug Pederson, they take advantage of opportunities when given to them. They won their first games when Nick Foles took over for Carson Wentz in 2017 and went on to the Super Bowl. Despite a dire situation leading into the final games of 2018, and Wentz injured again, they won their final contests to go back to the playoffs and even won a game.Adding to the importance of the win is the fact that the New York Giants have enjoyed a resurgence with rookie quarterback Daniel Jones. Dallas also dropped to 3-1 with a loss to the Saints to keep the division race close. On the other side, the Packers missed a golden opportunity to end September with a multi-game lead on their Northern foes with a goal line interception.
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Barcelona will need to reduce their wage bill next term, says LaLiga president Javier Tebas, as the club do not have the income in order to match their pay packets.
The Blaugrana have famously been in financial turmoil over recent seasons, yet have been able to conduct high-priced transfer dealings through the activation of financial levers and risky strategies.
These have been born out of selling off crucial non-playing assets, helping to secure moves for Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha ahead of the new campaign amongst others.
But Tebas and league corporate general manager Javier Gomez say Xavi s team will need to cut their cloth, while defending the league s actions that have seen them seemingly over-accommodate the club s needs.
Barca have to reduce …
Lionel Messi believes the special duel between him and Cristiano Ronaldo when the pair were on opposite sides of the Clasico rivalry will leave a lasting impression.
The Barcelona superstar went head-to-head with Ronaldo for almost a decade in LaLiga, where the two scored at an astonishing rate and practically assumed shared custody of the Ballon d Or.
Debate rages over who the world s best player is, but a shortlist of two is almost universally accepted – it is either Messi or Ronaldo.
The Portugal forward has since departed for Juventus, but Messi – who won a record sixth Ballon d Or in December – has fond memories of their long-running Spanish saga.
35 s Lionel Messi has become the player with the most hat-tricks in history (35), surpa…
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Round 33 of the Premier League season is being played from Tuesday to Thursday this week, and as its part, West Ham will welcome Liverpool to the London Stadium on Wednesday evening.
The two teams are fighting their respective battles to achieve different goals, which means every point won or dropped between now and the end of the season is likely to be of great consequence for both.
West Ham
The Hammers had a couple of excellent seasons, most notably the last two as they stood a decent chance of finishing inside the top four and eventually securing a place in Europe. Now, however, David Moyes team seems to have lost a big part of that drive and as the campaign approaches its finish, they haven t done enough to feel safe abou…
Ryan Mason has a Tottenham team willing to fight for their place in the upper echelons of the Premier League after a comeback draw with Manchester United.
Goals from Pedro Porro and Son Heung-min helped the interim boss break the club s losing streak in the first game in charge after replacing Cristian Stellini
Mason is no stranger to the Spurs hot seat, having been caretaker following Jose Mourinho s exit two years ago, during which he was in charge for the EFL Cup final.
But after a 6-1 loss to Newcastle United last time out, Mason was delighted to get a response from his side that underlines their desire.
In football, you can win, lose or draw but the most important [thing] is that we react together, he told BT Sport. I have a team that s willing to f…
Real Madrid in fresh assault on De Gea
Champions League holders Real Madrid are stepping up their efforts to sign David De Gea from Manchester United, .
It is no secret that los Blancos are eager to lure the Spain international to Santiago Bernabeu and they are set to try and sign him in the next transfer window.
With long-serving keeper Iker Casillas nearing a summer exit, Real Madrid plan to recruit De Gea at the earliest opportunity.
The 24-year-old has proved his worth at Old Trafford, but his current contract is due to expire in June 2016.
And while the goalkeeper is open to extending his deal, his agents hope to include a €30 million release clause in any agreement, which is enough to suggest they are well aware of Real Madrid interest.
Inaki Williams does not see himself leaving Athletic Bilbao as he has big plans at the LaLiga outfit, despite reported interest from Liverpool.
Williams, 22, has emerged as a possible transfer target for Premier League title hopefuls Liverpool, with manager Jurgen Klopp an admirer.
But the Spanish forward, who earned his first international cap in May, has dismissed a move to Anfield, pledging his future to Athletic.
I m happy at Athletic, it s where I want to be, Williams told AS Diario.
I am very grateful to the fans, the club and my team-mates.
I want to continue here for many more years. I want to be Athletic s future number nine the player who raises the roof at San Mames every week and scores lot of goals.
Williams has been a rev…
Karim Benzema has revealed how Cristiano Ronaldo s departure has allowed him to take on a different role in Real Madrid s attack.
The Frenchman has scored a goal every 1.7 games across all competitions in the two-and-a-half seasons since Ronaldo made a €100million switch to Juventus.
But in their nine campaigns together at the Santiago Bernabeu, Benzema was instead finding the back of the net once every 2.2 games.
And the 33-year-old has now acknowledged that he had to sacrifice certain parts of his game for Ronaldo s benefit not that he has any regrets over the matter.
Cristiano s departure allowed me to play a different role. He scored 50 goals every year and you had to adapt to his game, he told El Pais.
15 has scored at least 15 goals …
Jose Mourinho would consider introducing diving lessons for his Roma stars because he fears the only way they will win penalties is by playing the clown .
The head coach was red-carded in Sunday s 1-0 home defeat to Atalanta after wildly protesting when Nicolo Zaniolo went down in the 55th minute under a challenge from Caleb Okoli but did not get a penalty.
Mourinho was adamant his team deserved a spot-kick for that incident, and he also wanted one in the first half for another challenge on Zaniolo, when Merih Demiral appeared to foul the Roma forward.
Zaniolo stumbled on and got back to his feet after tangling with Demiral, and the referee s refusal to point to the spot on that occasion appeared to fuel Mourinho s later tirade.
By marching onto the pit…
Honduras have stormed to the top of Group B at the CONCACAF Gold Cup with a 2-0 victory over Haiti, who have yet to win in 2013.
Ronny Martinez and Marvin Chavez scored either side of half-time for Honduras as they ruined Haiti s return to Gold Cup competition, while in the other Group B match, El Salvador drew 2-2 with Trinidad and Tobago.
The win on Monday handed Honduras three points and top spot in Group B with El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago equal on one point, while Haiti were left bottom of the standings.
Haiti missed out on the 2011 Gold Cup, as they won just once in three qualification games held less than a year after the 2010 earthquake in the tiny Caribbean nation, but their return to the continental championships started badly and did not get any bette…
Prestatyn Town s dream maiden European campaign will continue in the second qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League on Thursday.
Prestatyn qualified for continental competition for the first time in their history by winning the Welsh Cup in 2012-13, but were considered unlikely candidates to progress beyond the first round of qualification.
However, a shock win on penalties against SK Liepajas Metalurgs last week ensured their improbable journey would continue, with the club now preparing to meet Croatia s Rijeka.
And player-manager Neil Gibson, who scored the the second of two late goals in Latvia that forced spot-kicks, admits he can hardly believe his side s progress.
I ve just had a text five minutes ago from (Prestatyn defender) Dave Hayes asking me if it…