England has more to worry about then just Green

Soccer Betting Lines

06/12/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's safe to say that the English tabloids will come up with all kinds of clever headlines to describe the horrendous goal that Robert Green conceded in the Three Lion's 1-1 draw with the United States on Saturday to open the team's 2010 World Cup.

And while the enduring image of this match will be of a horrified Green desperately scrambling in vain to keep out Clint Dempsey's low shot, which slipped between his hands and trickled over the goal line, English fans have more to worry about than just their goalkeeping situation.

It's safe to say that Green will probably not take up the same position between the posts when England faces Algeria on June 18 in its next match, with either David James or Joe Hart manning that post.

James is the most experienced of the three, but at 39-years-of-age its fair to question if he still has it, while Hart had the best season of the three for Birmingham but is short on experience at just 23.

The goalkeeping situation was one of the big questions prior to the tournament, but there were a few other unsettling things that England manager Fabio Capello must work out.

The Italian is the highest-paid manager in the tournament and he will have to earn every penny if he is to take England as far as expected in this summer's competition.

Rio Ferdinand was given the captain's armband prior to the tournament before he suffered a knee injury that ruled him out. This left the injury-prone Ledley King to fill in for the Manchester United man, but he not-so- surprisingly lasted just one half before being replaced by Jamie Carragher, seemingly because of another injury.

Not only is Capello operating with a thin back line, but one that is also fairly slow.

American striker Jozy Altidore exploited this midway through the second half when he ran right by Carragher on the left wing and nearly bagged the winning goal, with Green tipping Altidore's shot onto the post.

If King is again battling injury problems it leaves only Carragher, Matthew Upson and the uncapped Michael Dawson as options in central defense to pair with John Terry.

There were a few bright spots in the England midfield as Steven Gerrard scored the team's lone goal and provided a number of dangerous crosses from the wings, while Aaron Lennon's pace proved troublesome on the right side.

But once again Frank Lampard struggled to make an impact, which has become a consistent theme for the talented Chelsea man.

It was hard to determine whether or not Wayne Rooney was on the field until the final 20 minutes, and he only made an impact when he began to drop further into the midfield to gain possession after failing to get decent service.

Gerrard's goal came just four minutes into the match and it looked like England would coast to victory from there, but instead the Americans worked their way back into the game and came within inches of taking the lead in the second half.

England put together good spells of play when they moved the ball along the ground and got it wide in space, but toward the end of the game they lacked creativity and got caught up in knocking long balls toward the head of substitute Peter Crouch instead of working it through the midfield.

The United States is no longer a lightweight in the world of soccer, but this was not a European heavyweight like Germany or Italy that gave England such a tough time.

We have heard so much about the famous 1950 meeting between these two teams when the USA stunned England, 1-0.

And while that result was an embarrassment for the British and they will now have to live with failing to beat the Yanks for a second time in the World Cup, there are clearly more important things to worry about.

A draw with the USA should be treated like losing to your little brother in a game of backyard basketball, its annoying but not the end of the world.

What will be treated like a tragedy, however, will be if England fails to advance beyond the quarterfinals for the fourth successive World Cup.

And based on what we saw on Saturday, there is a lot of work to be done in order to avoid another crisis.

Sortsillustrated Soccer Betting News

<< Big 3 have been inconsistent for Celtics
BOSTON (AP) -When the Boston Celtics assembled their new Big Three in the summer of 2007, they suddenly had three different options on offense - too many for opponents to handle, it turned out, and the league's most-decorated franchise drove to its

<< Group C favorites England, USA battle to draw in Rustenburg
Rustenburg, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - England and the United States battled to a 1-1 draw Saturday at Royal Bafokeng Stadium to open World Cup Group C play for both teams. England got a goal from midfielder Steven Gerrard in

<< Rays put OF Kapler on DL
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Rays have placed outfielder Gabe Kapler on the 15-day disabled list with a right hip flexor strain. Kapler is hitting .217 with a home run and eight runs batted in this sea

<< Cubs swap out relievers with promotion of Atkins
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs have recalled right-hander Mitch Atkins from Triple-A Iowa and optioned lefty James Russell to Iowa. Atkins will look to make his 2010 debut after going 4-2 with a 2.63 earned-run average i

<< Rachel Alexandra garners first win of 2010
Louisville, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defending Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra notched her first victory of the year Saturday in the $200,000 Fleur de Lis Handicap at Churchill Downs. The four-year-old filly snapped a two rac

Diamondbacks activate Montero from DL >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Diamondbacks have reinstated catcher Miguel Montero from the 15-day disabled list. The 26-year-old receiver was placed on the DL on April 11 with a right knee sprain and underwent surger

Garrigus goes in front in Memphis >>
Memphis, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Robert Garrigus shot a four-under 66 on Saturday to move atop the leaderboard after the third round of the St. Jude Classic. Garrigus finished 54 holes at 11-under 199 and is two strokes ahead at the TPC South

Almirola holds off Bodine and Busch for Michigan win >>
Brooklyn, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aric Almirola captured his second victory in the Camping World Truck Series by taking Saturday's VFW 200 at Michigan International Speedway. Almirola took the lead for the first time with seven laps t

Unites States sweeps Day Two at Curtis Cup >>
Manchester, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alexis Thompson and Jessica Korda won two matches together Saturday as they headlined the United States' sweep of second-day action at the Curtis Cup. After winning all three foursomes matches in

Third straight pole for Logano at Kentucky >>
Sparta, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joey Logano remained perfect at Kentucky Speedway by winning the pole for Saturday's Meijer 300 Nationwide Series race. Logano smoked the competition with a blistering lap of 177.212 m.p.h. for his four

Football Betting Lines

The 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds have been released and Denver Broncos' running back Knowshon Moreno has been made the opening favorite.

Bet NFL Sports Lines

Moreno was selected in the first round of April's NFL draft and is expected to carry the rushing load for the Broncos this season. And with Jay Cutler now in Chicago, Moreno might be expected to be Denver's entire offense.

Betting Lines from sports betting lines have made Moreno a 5/2 favorite to win this year's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Fellow running back Chris “Beanie” Wells (Arizona Cardinals) is right behind Moreno at 7/2, while Donald Brown (Indianapolis Colts) and receiver Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) are 5/1 to win. Quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) and Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions) are 7/1 and 8/1, respectively.

A couple of players who present some value are Josh Freeman, Shonn Green and Darrius Heyward-Bey.

Freeman needs to beat out Byron Leftwich to become the starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but if he does, he has a lot or raw talent and could use the weapons around him (i.e. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Bryant) to be very successful in his first season.

Green enters a crowded backfield in New York, but considering both Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are unhappy about their contract situations and might holdout, the former Iowa product could become the Jets' primary back.

Everyone was shocked when Al Davis took Heyward-Bey with the eighth overall pick in April's draft, but the kid has a tremendous amount of talent and if quarterback JaMarcus Russell takes the next step this year, the former Maryland product could blossom. Plus, Heyward-Bey will be looking to prove the people wrong who said Oakland should have taken Michael Crabtree with the No. 8 pick.

And if you're looking for a deep sleeper, check out Pat White at 30/1. He enters the Miami Dolphins vaunted “Wild Cat” offense and could be a big time playmaker.

For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, see below.

2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds to Win

Ramses Barden (NYG) 40/1

Andre Brown (NYG) 20/1

Donald Brown (IND) 5/1

Kenny Britt (TEN) 20/1

Glenn Coffee (SFO) 30/1

Chase Coffman (CIN) 50/1

Michael Crabtree (SFO) 5/1

Josh Freeman (TB) 14/1

Shonn Green (NYJ) 14/1

Percy Harvin (MIN) 10/1

Darrius Heyward-Bay (OAK) 18/1

Juaquan Iglesias (CHI) 30/1

Cornelius Ingram (PHI) 50/1

Rashad Jennings (JAC) 30/1

Johnny Knox (CHI) 40/1

Jeremy Maclin (PHI) 18/1

Mohamed Massaquoi (CLE) 30/1

LeSean McCoy (PHI) 12/1

Knowshon Moreno (DEN) 5/2

Hakeem Nicks (NYG) 18/1

Brandon Pettigrew (DET) 30/1

Brian Robiskie (CLE) 20/1

Mark Sanchez (NYJ) 7/1

Matthew Stafford (DET) 8/1

Jason Smith (STL) 40/1

Mike Thomas (JAC) 25/1

Patrick Turner (MIA) 50/1

Mike Wallace (PIT) 50/1

Chris Wells (ARI) 7/2

Pat White (MIA) 30/1

Field (Any Other Player) 9/1

Betting Line

To visit this sports betting site go to BettingExpress.com for all your football betting lines needs.

For sports betting with credit cards site go to BettingExpress.com as well.

MySportsbook.com week 1 NFL lines


Now that the 2008 NFL schedule is finally out, it is only matter-of-course for lines on “Week 1” to follow.  Of course MySportsbook.com is the first to churn out odds for the NFL’s inaugural week for the upcoming season.   Expect a lot of fireworks the first Thursday night of the season as the defending champion Indianapolis Colts face off against the surprise of the 2008 season, the New Orleans Saints.  These teams were ranked #1 and #3 in the NFL respectively a season ago so a high scoring affair could be in order.  As of now, the Colts will be giving 6 points to the Saints; keep in mind the Saints were one of the better road teams last season going 6-3 SU and 7-2 ATS.  The first Monday night of the season will again provide a “double feature”. Coming off a disappointing season, the Cincinnati Bengals will look to get back to playoffs and improve their public image as they take on the AFC North favorite Baltimore Ravens.  The second game features a couple of teams that haven’t had too much success recently but each could make some noise if the NFC is as weak as it was last year as the San Francisco 49ers host the Arizona Cardinals. The most interesting game of the opening week will feature the NFC champion Bears as they hit the road to take on the NFL’s top team during last year’s regular season, the San Diego Chargers.

MySportsbook.com Week 1 odds:

Saints +6 @ Colts -6

Falcons @ Vikings (pick ‘em)

Panthers @ Rams (pick ‘em)

Broncos -3.5 @ Bills +3.5

Chiefs -1 @ Texans +1

Dolphins +3 @ Redskins -3

Patriots -5 @ Jets +5

Eagles -3.5 @ Packers +3.5

Steelers -4 @ Browns +4

Titans +6 @ Jaguars -6

Bears +6 @ Chargers -6

Lions +3 @ Raiders -3

Bucs +6.5 @ Seahawks -6.5

Giants +4 @ Cowboys -4

Ravens +3 @ Bengals -3

Cardinals +3 @ 49ers -3

 Super Bowl line (2008)

NFC +6.5 vs. AFC -6.5

MySportsbook is a large, publicly traded company with strong financial backing. You will find their customer service is second to none and their web site is extremely user friendly and easy-to-use. All major professional sports games are available. Once you signup with MySportsbook, you may never use another online sportsbook again.

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