Football Betting

Atletico duo ruled out of Europa League tie

Soccer Betting Lines

02/14/2012 - Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atletico Madrid revealed Tuesday that midfielder Thiago and defender Antonio Lopez have been ruled out of Thursday's Europa League tie against Lazio as the two players are still recovering from injuries.

Thiago, 30, has yet to shake off a left hamstring injury that has plagued the Portuguese star to just one league appearance all season. Lopez, 30, is working alongside Atletico's medical staff as he aims to recover from a muscle tear.

The duo are certain to miss the Europa League clash in Rome, but they are also likely to be sidelined for Atletico's trip to Sporting Gijon in La Liga action on Saturday.


<< Bombers re-sign Morley
Winnipeg, MB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have re-signed offensive lineman Steve Morley. Morley appeared in all 18 games at guard for the Bombers last season, as well as the East Final and Grey Cup championship game, a

<< Blue Jackets activate Letestu
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Columbus Blue Jackets have activated center Mark Letestu off injured reserve. Letestu has missed the last 17 games due to a hand injury suffered at San Jose on January 5. In 36 games with the B

<< Boca enjoys successful start to Clausura campaign
Buenos Aires, Argentina (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After winning last season's Argentina Apertura title, Boca Juniors got off on the right foot in the Clausura on Friday with a 2-0 win at home against Olimpo. Dario Cvitanich scored

<< Rams name Snead general manager
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Rams have named Les Snead as the club's new general manager. Snead spent the past 13 seasons in the personnel department with the Atlanta Falcons. He was one of about 10 candidates for

<< Brewers beat Veras in arbitration
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The salary arbitration case between the Brewers and pitcher Jose Veras was ruled in favor of club on Tuesday. Milwaukee will pay Veras a $2 million salary in 2012 instead of the $2.375 million he re

Rangers enters administration, docked 10 points >>
Glasgow, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Scottish Premier League champions Rangers entered administration Tuesday, which automatically penalized the storied club 10 points, and essentially handed the title to rival Celtic. Rangers needed to ente

Leafs put Gunnarsson on IR >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Maple Leafs have placed defenseman Carl Gunnarsson on injured reserve and recalled defenseman Keith Aulie from the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League. Gunnarsson has an ankle injury

Tevez returns to City following absence >>
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlos Tevez returned to Manchester City on Tuesday, months after leaving the club following a dispute with coach Roberto Mancini. Tevez and Mancini were involved in a dispute in September, when T

Golf Tidbits: So I was wrong about Phil & Tiger >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Was it just two weeks ago that some writer asked whether Tiger or Phil was closer to winning? And didn't said writer come to the conclusion that Tiger was closer? Guilty as charged! I'm sure Phil Mick

Woods will play next three PGA Tour events >>
Jupiter, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tiger Woods announced on his web site Tuesday that he will play the next three PGA Tour events, starting next week. First up is the World Golf Championships - Accenture Match Play Championship, a tournament

Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.

Super Bowl XLIII Betting Odds

Super Bowl XLIII, the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Super Bowl XLIII is now set, the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers will meet each other on February 1st in Tampa's Raymond James Stadium to battle it out for the coveted Lombardi Trophy. The game kicks off at 6:00pm ET on NBC with announcers Al Michaels and John Madden covering the on-field action. Super Bowl XLIII betting odds at online bookmaker MySportsbook.com have the Steelers listed as an early -6.5 against the spread favorite.Super Bowl XLIII Betting Odds

Pittsburgh earned their passage to the big game by beating their division rival, the Baltimore Ravens, 23-14 in yesterday's AFC Championship Game. The Steelers jumped on Baltimore early, building a 13-0 first half lead, and never let up on their way to a fairly easy win. Although the Ravens did close to within two points in the fourth quarter, it never appeared as if they had enough offense to pull off the upset.

The Steelers dominating defense held Baltimore to a total of 198 yards while allowing them to convert just three third downs in 13 attempts. Pittsburgh also forced quarterback Joe Flacco into three interceptions, one of which safety Troy Polamalu returned fourty yards for a touchdown.

The Cardinals, by far the playoff team with the longest odds to reach Super Bowl XLIII, did so yesterday with a 32-25 upset of the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship. Arizona charged out of the gates and built a 24-6 halftime lead that had the Eagles venerable defense reeling. Quarterback Kurt Warner and wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald did most of the damage, connecting on three first half touchdowns.

Arizona, however, could not sustain their momentum and the Eagles took a 25-24 with 10:45 left to play in the fourth. The Cardinals, with the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance hanging in the balance, mounted a fourteen play, 72 yard touchdown drive that consumed 7:52 off the clock. Warner hit running back Tim Hightower on a short screen for the go-ahead, game clinching score that will forever live in Cardinal infamy.

MySportsbook.com's Super Bowl XLIII Betting Odds:

Pittsburgh Steelers -6.5 (-110), Over 46.5 (-110), -260 (Money line)

Arizona Cardinals +6.5 (-110), Under 46.5 (-110), +220 (Money line)

Matt Foust won both of his conference championship plays yesterday and he is ready to serve up plenty of Super Bowl action. Each individual play costs $15.00, however, MySportsbook.com recommends purchasing Matt's NFL Playoff Package which includes all of Matt's Super Bowl props and picks from just $45.00.

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