It’s been another wild week in the sporting world. From a jaw dropping trade in the NFL, to Manchester City moving one step closer to a historic treble, we cover all of the week’s biggest sporting highlights.
New York Jets and Green Bay Packers finally complete trade for Aaron Rodgers
Since the culmination of Green Bay’s disappointing 2022/2023 season, all eyes were on Aaron Rodgers and his next move. With retirement a potential option for the four-time MVP winner, it was clear that his days with Green Bay were numbered.
With Rodgers deciding to continue his pro-career, the New York Jets were keen to add the superstar quarterback to their burgeoning roster.
With many believing that the potential trade deal had the capacity to rumble on throughout the offseason, talks accelerated ahead of this week’s NFL Draft and on Tuesday a deal was concluded.
Both sides will emerge from the trade happy with the deal.
Despite his status as one of the game’s best players, Green Bay have been able to shift a player almost nearing forty of the books.
With Rodgers often considered a divisive figure, it now gives the franchise an opportunity for to see what they drafted in former first round pick Jordan Love.
To acquire Rodgers, the Jets and Packers have swapped first round draft picks with Green Bay now picking at 13 and the Jets at 15. The Jets also gave up a second round and sixth round pick in this year’s draft.
Further draft damage to the Jets is minimal with Gang Green also sacrificing a second-round pick in next year’s draft.
On paper it looks like the Jets have one of the most talented teams on both sides of the ball. It’s clear that the signing of Rodgers indicates that’s it’s the Super Bowl or bust for the Jets and they will hope that their new investment pays off.
Manchester City crush Arsenal to put themselves in Premier League pole position
For weeks Wednesday’s Premier League clash between Manchester City and Arsenal has been eagerly anticipated.
A showdown between the top two teams in the league, many were eager to see if Arsenal could extend their lead at the top of the table to eight points, whilst a win for City would see Guardiola’s men close the gap to just two points with City having two games in hand.
Despite the anticipation, the game turned into a blow out with City continuing their recent good form to run out easy 4-1 winners.
City were given the perfect start when Kevin De Bruyne opened to scoring with a fine shot in just the seventh minute.
With halftime looming, City doubled their lead thanks to a fine John Stones header.
In the second half City would extend their lead to three thanks to De Bruyne’s second of the game, with Erling Haaland scoring his 49th of the season to wrap up the points with practically the last kick of the game.
It’s been a fantastic week for City who moved into the FA Cup final after thrashing Championship side Sheffield United this past Sunday. With a Champions League showdown against Real Madrid just a few weeks away, everything is looking good for the Citizens who will be hoping to repeat the feat of cross city rivals Manchester United who famously won the treble back in 1999.
Elsewhere in the Premier League, Chelsea stretched their winless run to eight games following a lifeless 2-0 defeat to West London rivals Brentford. There were also wins for Aston Villa, Wolves, Nottingham Forest, Liverpool and Newcastle United.
Barcelona and Real Madrid both lose, gap at the top remains ten points
Both Barcelona and Real Madrid will look back on this week’s mid-week games as big opportunities lost. Real who have the Champions League semifinal against Man City to look forward too, could have reduced the gap to their great Spanish rivals to just seven points with a win over Girona.
With Madrid looking to apply pressure at the top of the table, they dropped arguably their worst defensive performance in years. Losing the match 4-2, the shocking loss could have all but ended Los Blancos title charge, but they were given a crucial lifeline from Barcelona.
Heading into their match against Rayo Vallecano knowing that a win would all but secure the title, Barcelona were unable to capitalise on Real Madrid’s shock defeat, falling 2-1 in a poor display. It’s now just one in five for Xavi’s men and although the title remains firmly in their hands, they will want to get over the line sooner rather than later.
NBA Playoffs starting to take shape – Jimmy Butler downs Bucks.
The first round of this year’s NBA Playoffs has almost been completed. In what has been widely regarded as one of the most exciting starts to the NBA Postseason in decades, the New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, Denver Nuggets and Phoenix Suns have all booked their tickets into the next round.
One team that few people would have believed to have made it this far was the Miami Heat. Entering the playoffs as the Eastern Conference’s eighth seeds, the Heat stunned the heavily fancied and top seed Milwaukee Bucks 4-1 to advance to the next round.
The Heat’s Jimmy Butler was nothing short of sensational across the five-match series.
Contributing a franchise record 56 points in game 4, Butler was at his brilliant best to clinch the series in game 5, contributing a stellar 42 points to set the Heat up with a tasty looking matchup against the New York Knicks.
Two matches are still to be decided over the course of the weekend with the Lakers leading the Grizzlies 3-2 and the Warriors leading the Kings by the same score.
What To Watch Next Week
The sporting action continues to come thick and fast and there is plenty of fantastic action over the next seven days.
2023 NFL Draft (28th – 29th April) – Round 1 is in the books of this year’s NFL Draft but the fun is just beginning with rounds 2 and 3 due to be completed on Friday night with the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds to be completed on Saturday.
The Bundesliga title race – the Bundesliga is set up for a fantastic finish. Leaders Borussia Dortmund kick off the German football weekend when they travel to Bochum. Dortmund knows a win will see them move four points clear of Bayern Munich in second. Bayern will have a chance to respond on Sunday when they host Hertha Berlin.
Napoli could make history in Serie A – Napoli could clinch their first Serie A title since 1990 with a win over Salernitana. To be crowned champions they will need Inter to drop points at home to Lazio on the 30th.
NBA Playoffs (29th April) – Game 6 of the LA Lakers vs Memphis Grizzlies and Sacramento Kings vs Golden State Warriors will take place this Saturday night, both of which you can watch via live NBA streams. Wins for the Lakers and Warriors would see them advance to the next round. Wins for either the Grizzlies or Kings would see either series head to a final Game 7.
Premier League Sunday (30th April) – Two soccer games to stream this Sunday with Manchester City looking to leapfrog Arsenal in the Premier League when they travel to Craven Cottage to take on Fulham. Sunday concludes with Tottenham’s trip to Anfield where they take on a resurgent Liverpool.
Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix – 30th April – Through the first three races of the Formula 1 season nobody has been able to stop Red Bull. Defending champion Max Verstappen already looks to have a formidable grip on this year’s driver’s standings and he will be looking to cement his spot at the top of the driver standings with a win in Baku this weekend. You can watch the race live through F1 streams if it’s not available via your local TV channels.
London Derby (2nd May) – A fiery London Derby awaits this Tuesday as Arsenal host city rivals Chelsea. Arsenal have been top of the Premier League since September but could head into this fixture one point behind Manchester City who play Fulham on Sunday. Simply a must-win, everything is set up for a classic encounter.
