data-mm-id=”_37bavvr6w”>Hope for the best, plan for the worst has been the running theme for sports leagues trying to hold a season in the midst of a global pandemic in the year 2020. The NFL is no different. With no bubble environment, the league is left to hope that a coronavirus outbreak won't completely derail the season, but forced to prepare any and all contingencies in the case that it does. Those contingencies are being tested for the first time this year. Three players and five staff members of the Tennessee Titans tested positive for COVID-19 after Sunday's game against the Minnesota Vikings. Both teams subsequently shut down their facilities. As of right now, all is well in Minnesota, with no positives. But matters are different in Tennessee after an additional player tested positive. As such, the NFL has postponed the Titans' next game, which was supposed to be a 1 p.m. ET matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, as ESPN's Diana Russini was first to report. Sunday’s game between the Steelers and Titans is being postponed per multiple sources. They are considering all options to reschedule, Monday night as one of them. This will all be based on test results.— Dianna Russini (@diannaESPN) September 30, 2020This is obviously the correct decision. Putting aside issues like competitive balance (since the Titans can't practice until Saturday at the earliest if all goes well), it's the safe decision. It can take up to several days for an individual to test positive. Rushing into a game on Sunday would be bad for all sorts of reasons. The safest decision would be to reschedule the game entirely to a different week and give the Steelers and Titans a bye this week. Neither team would be particularly happy about that, but it's impossible to argue it's not the most cautious call. However, the NFL will leave that as the absolutely last option because the schedule is a very delicate thing to balance and switching up bye weeks would throw it off. So, let us assume that everything goes to plan otherwise the rest of the week. Nobody on the Titans tests positive and there are no false negatives, allowing the NFL to hold the game. In that scenario, Tuesday makes the most sense as the night to hold a game. It's already being considered, as the NFL announced in a statement today. From the NFL: Steelers-Titans is officially postponed and will be played either Monday or Tuesday pic.twitter.com/FgxhI36JcV— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) September 30, 2020Head coach Mike Vrabel is having his team virtually prepare as if the game will be as early as Monday. Mike Vrabel says don't assume the Titans will be allowed in their building on Saturday. He says it could be earlier, or later. He says they're preparing as if they're playing as early as MONDAY.— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) September 30, 2020A Monday night double-header would prevent Pittsburgh and Tennessee from having to prepare on a short week for Week 5, but MNF double-headers aren't great for fans or for ratings. More importantly, Tuesday would mark a full week from the first known positive test. If the NFL isn't going to move the game from this week outright, giving it as much time as possible from the initial positive will provide a greater sense of confidence that they aren't making a horrible error by pushing through this. Which they definitely still might be. This would only give the Titans and Steelers Wednesday to Saturday to prepare for their next games, both of which are slated to take place next Sunday at 1 p.m. Neither the teams nor the players would be pleased about that. But such are the sacrifices that must be made this year. Nothing is going according to plan. Nobody is happy about the concessions we've had to make. They'll figure out a way to deal with it. Again: the safe, smart decision would be to fiddle with the schedule and give both teams the week off to be completely certain this won't result in a COVID outbreak on two teams that could threaten the season. But it doesn't seem like the league will do that in anything other than a worst-case scenario. Tuesday is the next best possible option. If the game must go on, it should be held then.
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Best Odds: 4/9
Bookmaker:
Two European icons who will be looking to punch their Nations League final ticket on Thursday night, Spain will meet Italy at FC Twente’s De Grolsch Veste.
Spain
Starting with Spain, while La Roja might have opened their winter World Cup adventure with a rampant display as they clinched a 7-0 romp against Costa Rica on November 23rd, that result was nothing more than a minor boost for the former world champions. Crashing out at the Round of 16 stage as they suffered penalties heartbreak against Morocco, it is no secret that Luis de la Fuente has come under a huge amount of scrutiny over the past six months. Likewise, although Spain might have got their European Championships qualifying run underway with a routine 3-0 win against Norw…
Best Odds: 20/21
Bookmaker:
Seeking a Bundesliga boost on Friday night, Wolfsburg will make the trip to the Veltins-Arena when they meet Schalke.
Schalke
Starting with the hosts, while Schalke might have cruised their way to a Bundesliga return this season, the Blues are enduring yet another top-flight nightmare. Although Thomas Reis side might have claimed back-to-back 0-0 stalemates against Borussia Monchengladbach and Koln, the former Bochum boss finds his side picked as a landslide relegation pick in 2023. Opening this weekend s fixtures sat rock-bottom of the Bundesliga table and already eight points adrift of finding a route out of the drop zone, Schalke are yet to claim a single victory since returning from the World Cup s winter break. With their extend…
Lionel Messi admitted he is concerned about the coronavirus situation as the superstar captain targets a long-awaited title with Argentina at the Copa America.
Messi s Argentina will open their Copa America campaign against rivals Chile in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Monday.
Brazil is hosting the Copa after CONMEBOL controversially removed Argentina and Colombia as co-hosts due to respective political and COVID-19 issues.
Despite being one of the country s worst hit by the coronavirus health crisis, Brazil was awarded hosting duties for this year s showpiece event, which was already pushed back a year because of COVID-19.
Defending champions Brazil won 3-0 on Sunday against a Venezuela side that had reported 12 positive coronavirus tests amongst their ranks…
Tottenham defender Ryan Sessegnon has been backed to bounce back from his latest hamstring surgery by a medical expert.
Sessegnon had an operation on his right hamstring on Monday after the 23-year-old suffered a muscle injury in action for Spurs’ Under-21s on February 17.
It was the second time Sessegnon has been operated on during the past 12 months, but significantly the previous surgery in July was on his left hamstring.
Ryan Sessegnon has undergone surgery to his right hamstring following an injury during an Under-21s match.
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial)
The ex-Fulham player has struggled with muscle injuries over recent seasons, although Sessegnon did state in an Instagram post that his left hamstring now feels “strong” and h…
With England’s lower leagues stealing center stage this weekend, we are looking forward to what looks set to be an eye-catching string of affairs. So, for those of you looking to place a Saturday acca, we have found a handful of helpful tips that are worth taking note of.
Saturday March 25th
BST 15:00 Portsmouth vs Port Vale
While Portsmouth might have endured a brief wobble earlier in the month, Saturday’s hosts have come roaring back in some style. Along with cruising their way to a 3-1 romp away at Accrington Stanley on March 14th, John Mousinho’s men were last seen putting in another impressive display. Eventually claiming a deserved 2-0 victory at home against Bristol Rovers, the south coast outfit should be smelling the chance to make another statement he…
St Mirren boss Stephen Robinson has bracketed Steven Davis alongside George Best in the pantheon of Northern Ireland greats following the midfielder’s retirement on Thursday.
Davis is most closely associated with Rangers where in two spells at the Ibrox club he won four titles, as well as lifting both the Scottish Cup and Scottish League Cup on three occasions.
The 39-year-old played 140 times for Northern Ireland – the UK male international caps record – while former Manchester United and Northern Ireland winger Best is generally accepted to be one of the best players ever to have played the game.
Robinson, capped seven times for Northern Ireland where he played alongside Davis and who was assistant to Michael O’Neill at Euro 2016, said of his former tea…
Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool must give “absolutely everything every game” and ignore the surrounding talk heading into the season’s climax, with the matches ahead “all finals”.
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They are also through to the Europa League quarter-finals, playing Atalanta over two legs next month.
Liverpool host Brighton in the league on Sunday, just before City and Arsenal meet at the Etihad Stadium.
And when asked at his pre-match press conference what was key…
Forest Green boss David Horseman hailed his wealth of attacking options after Troy Deeney’s first Rovers goal earned them a 1-1 draw at AFC Wimbledon.
The former Watford star lobbed Dons goalkeeper Alex Bass with 15 minutes to go, cancelling out James Ball’s first-half strike.
Deeney’s arrival added to the goal threat for a side already boasting fellow summer addition Matty Taylor as well as Matty Stevens, who scored 23 goals when Rovers were promoted from Sky Bet League Two in the 2021-22 campaign.
Deeney may face competition from team-mate Ty Omotoye, who was in close attendance, to claim his goal, while Stevens spurned several opportunities at Plough Lane.
But Horseman feels it will not be long until his illustrious strikers are regularly finding…
The Premier League returns this weekend after the international break, with leaders Liverpool travelling to Manchester United in the pick of the fixtures.
Manchester City trail Liverpool by eight points and cannot afford another setback when they make the trip to Crystal Palace, while Chelsea host Newcastle United and Tottenham take on Watford.
The last of the 10 games takes place in Yorkshire on Monday as Sheffield United welcome third-place Arsenal, who have played more Premier League games at Bramall Lane without victory than they have any other ground in the competition.
Ahead of this weekend s action, test your top-flight knowledge with our Opta-powered big Friday Premier League quiz!
Answers are at the bottom of the page.
1. Newc…
Prediction: Both Teams To Score and England To Win
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Bookmaker:
England could seal their qualification for the 2020 European Championships as they face the Czech Republic in Prague on Friday evening.
The Three Lions will book their spot at next summer s competition with a victory at the Sinobo Stadium, whilst a loss to the hosts could potentially open the group up with just a couple of matches remaining.
Czech Republic
With the top two teams in each qualifying group bagging an automatic place at the competition, Jaroslav Šilhavý s troops now have a wonderful chance to reach their sixth consecutive Euros championships. The team are currently sitting second in Group A following nine points out of five matches. They earned a crucial victory…