Reds face must-win contest against Besiktas

Soccer Betting Lines

11/05/2007 - Liverpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Liverpool has its back against the wall and must produce a win on Tuesday at Anfield against Besiktas to keep hope alive of advancing in the Champions League.

The Reds entered Group A as favorites, but proceeded to draw with FC Porto, before dropping its last two games against Marseille and Besiktas.

After reaching the final of last year's competition, Rafael Benitez and his men now sit at the bottom of the table, six points behind leaders Marseille and four adrift of second-place FC Porto.

Benitez and Liverpool may get a boost with the return of striker Fernando Torres, who is battling an adductor strain and was back in training on Monday.

Liverpool has scored just two goals in its first three games and can use all the offensive weapons it can get. The team is without Xabi Alonso (metatarsal) for a month, while defender Daniel Agger is still out as well.

The team has created plenty of chances in its first three games, but its failure to put goals away in the final third has let them down time and again.

With some better finishing, Liverpool could very easily win its final three games and still grab a spot in the next round, but they now have no room for error.

In Group A's other contest on Tuesday, surprise leaders Marseille host Porto with the French club holding a two-point advantage on the Portuguese side.

Chelsea have a three-point lead over the rest of the field in Group B, and they travel to Germany to meet Schalke. The London side downed Schalke 2-0 last time out, and they can all but clinch a spot in the second round with another victory, while second-place Rosenborg visits Valencia. The Spanish club is reeling after firing its coach and going through a tough stretch in La Liga, but they can take a big step forward with a win over the surprising Norwegian outfit.

Olympiakos had the lead in Group C after two rounds of games, but they dropped a 4-2 contest to Real Madrid in their last game, and host the Spanish champions on Tuesday in an effort to reclaim the top spot. The Greek club trails Real by three points, while the bottom two clubs, Werder Bremen and Lazio, square off at the Stadio Olimpico.

Shakhtar Donetsk will be looking for revenge when AC Milan comes to town with both teams sitting level on points at the top of Group D. Milan easily handled the Ukrainian side 4-1 at the San Siro last time out, but Shakhtar will be hoping for at least a point to keep themselves in a good position to advance. Benfica earned its first win of the competition last time out against Celtic, and they will try to make it two straight when they travel to Celtic Park.

Wednesday's action features two Premiership teams, Arsenal and Manchester United, who can both secure spots in the second round with wins.

The Gunners are currently 3-0 in Group H, and visit Slavia Prague needing three points for a spot in the next round, while the other game in the group is between Sevilla and Steaua Bucurest. Sevilla can also all but secure passage if they win and Arsenal beats Slavia.

United can go through in front of its home fans if they down Dynamo Kiev at Old Trafford. Sir Alex Ferguson's team beat the Ukrainian side 4-2 last time out, and should have no problem repeating their victory. Roma can also sit comfortably with a win as they square off against Sporting Lisbon in Portugal.

Group E leaders Barcelona and Rangers will meet up once again after the two teams played to a 0-0 draw at the Ibrox. Neither side looked interested in winning the game, but both are still in a good position to advance. That's because they both hold a four-point lead on third-place Lyon, who can get back in contention with another win against Stuttgart. The French champions beat the German squad 2-0 last time out, and must do so again if they want to advance past the group stage.

The tightest group at the top is easily Group G, with the top three teams separated by only two points. Inter Milan leads the group with six points and has a winnable game at home against CSKA Moscow, while the group's other game is a battle for second place between Fenerbahce and PSV Eindhoven. PSV trails the Turkish side by one point, but they could only manage a 0-0 draw with Fenerbahce on home soil, and now must travel to Sukru Saracoglu to face a very difficult atmosphere.

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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South.  Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC.  The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game.  For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft.  Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.

1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign?  New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1.  Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT.  Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.

Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami

2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season.  With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round.  LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems.  If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU

3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season.  The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach.  The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub.  High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career.  With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson. 

Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season.  The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age.  It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot.  This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.

Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas

It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season.  On the clock: the NFC North

Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2    

Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1

Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1

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

American Idol Betting Odds: Season 6  

The online gambling websites are in the process of deciphering each American Idol contestant and his or her chances of winning Season 6 to come up with the early American Idol betting lines.

Tim Dalton of MySportsbook.com has been locked away in a soundproof room coming up with all the latest tallies, we are told. "American Idol has become one of the most significant betting events of the year," claims Jack Black of MySportsbook.com.  "Last year, millions were bet during the season across the globe, not just in America.

It's tough early on since we really do not have a glimpse as to how well each of these individuals will perform solo on a week-to-week basis.  It's like Week 1 of the NFL.  Pre-season means nada!

We do know the 24 finalists however.

Sanjaya Malakar is the young man whose sister failed to make it into the Top 24.  He's very low key but - unless he totally flubs - will probably win over the young girlie vote for a few weeks anyway.  He's too young to go all the way, according to Payton O'Brien. 

Brandon Rogers - Who?

Phil Stacy is the military guy who missed his daughter's birth because of the Memphis audition.  He should go a good distance.

Chris Sligh - He's got the humor and in many ways he's the Anti-American Idol much like last year's winner Taylor Hicks was.  And this is why he'll probably get pretty far in this competition.  He's chubby, white with a big curly afro....but more importantly, a great voice!  People love "real", not "real cute" to go all the way. 

"Blake Lewis should go far because of his uniqueness and looks.  He's the boy next store with a twist - he beat boxes.  But on top of this, he's a great singer, and I adore him," Payton O'Brien relayed.

A talented beat-boxer Blake Lewis was a hit during the group sing in Hollywood but Simon explained that this is a singing contest just before he told him he was “in.”

Paul Kim has caught our own roving reporter, Jenny Woo's eyes. 

"I love the fact that there is a Korean American on the show and he is bound to get more Asians tuning into the show," Woo said from her Miami Beach estate.  "There has never been a major presence of Asian-Americans on American Idol in the past.  He's a hottie with a nice voice so that should help to take him far.  Expect heavy betting action from the Asian community."

Sundance Head - He's not perfect, but he's got the personality that will take him through a few weeks, plus he's got the lineage (son of Roy Head - whose 1965 single, "Treat Her Right," hit No. 5 in the charts) 

And the others:

Rudy Cardinas
AJ Tabaldo - the 5th time is the charm
Nicolas Pedro
Chris Richardson
Jared Cotter

The girls

"Melinda Doolittle has one of the best voices," says MySportsbook.com Reporter and an acclaimed dancer in her own right, Destiney Lewis.  "It is great to see a back up singer step out like she has.  The girl needs to gain more confidence but that can also be a positive.  I think she will go far."

Alena Alexander - Those tears (she never seems to stop bawling) should get her far.

"Single mom Lakisha Jones I suspect will be a pretty big favorite entering Week 1 of the competition," says Destiny Williams.  Jones is an excellent singer and down to earth.  "She'll have a wide appeal," echoed O'Brien.

Nicole Trellis - Seems to exert confidence.

Amy Krebs - a powerful singer.

Antonella Barba
Gina Glocksen
Hailey Scanardo
Jordan Sparks
Stephanie Edwards
Leslie Hunt
Sabrina Sloan

MySportsbook.com is offering a 20% signup bonus with an initial deposit (i.e. open your American Idol betting account with $300, receive another $60 in which to bet with). 

Last two contestants will be?

1 Male/1 Female +100 (a $10 bet pays $10 plus your initial $10)

2 Males +170 (a $10 bet pays $17 plus your initial $17)

2 Females +130 (a $10 bet pays $13 plus your initial $10)

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