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Quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts get all the hype, but true NFL aficionados know Sunday's big game comes down to the two most decisive players on the gridiron: kickers Harrison Butker of the Kansas City Chiefs and Jake Elliott of the Philadelphia Eagles.

It was Butker who sent "Joe Cool" Burrow packing in the AFC Championship with a 45-yard kick through gusting wind, while Elliott's already drilled nine extra points in just two postseason games.

Damn, and just like that it's over. After Sunday's defeat to Nottingham Forest left Leeds above the relegation zone on goal difference, the club announced the end of manager Jesse Marsch on Monday. The American is survived by his three sons, Tyler Adams, Brenden Aaronson and Weston McKennie.

After playing the 2021 tournament in the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2022 competition with a weakened field, the SheBelieves Cup returns in a big way this February with the USWNT playing matches against Canada, Japan and Brazil ahead of this summer's main event, the 2023 FIFA World Cup.

The USMNT ended its January camp with a high-energy, low-quality 0-0 draw against Colombia on Saturday night. It was a match that suited Kellyn Acosta's ability to be everywhere all at once in midfield, and it provided us with a glimpse into the shattered goalscoring confidence of Matthew Hoppe. Time is still on the 21-year-old's side.

The USMNT began 2023 with a frustrating 2-1 friendly defeat to Serbia at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, taking the lead through Brandon Vazquez's powerfully snapped header before clear defensive errors ruined Anthony Hudson's debut as interim manager.

With all six substitutions being made by the 73rd minute, quite a few players graced the pitch without making much of an impression. Club América winger Alejandro Zendejas went the full 90 on the right, but the 24-year-old's talent only came through in flashes. 

As Major League Soccer enters its 28th season, one example of the league's growing strength is just how difficult it is to determine which 10 stadiums you'd like to visit most. 

I'll whisper it, but I feel like I'm discerning some faint traces of light ahead with regards to the USMNT's direction. There's obviously still no permanent manager, but every day takes us further from Gregg Berhalter and closer to what's demanded when hosting the world's greatest sporting event come 2026.

They promised us the good old days when league-leading Arsenal welcomed third-place Manchester United to the Emirates on Sunday; a bit of blood and thunder of the Roy Keane-Patrick Vieira, Ruud van Nistelrooy-Martin Keown variety that's been largely lacking over the last 15 years of this rivalry.

Well it was just like old times with the Gunners taking the majority of possession and menacing throughout but United looking no less virile when they thundered forward on the counter (although the presence of Wout Weghorst does take some of the glamor away).