11/14/2008 - Valladolid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Madrid lost Ruud Van Nistelrooy for the season earlier this week, but the Dutch striker's absence is not what coach Bernd Schuster is worried about the most before Saturday's game at Valladolid.
Van Nistelrooy was an integral part of Real's offense, which is second in Spain with 28 goals through 10 weeks. But Schuster believes Real Madrid will continue to score, it's tightening up on the other end that really matters.
Real Madrid has struggled in its last nine matches, going just 4-3-2 - which is unacceptable by the Spanish giants standards. Real has allowed 19 goals during that stretch, including at least two goals in seven of those matches.
Despite the woes, Real is still just two points behind Barcelona in the league and in position to advance in the Champions League.
And although Schuster admitted Real would "keep an eye on the market" to find a replacement for Van Nistelrooy - who had season-ending knee surgery this week in the United States - it has bigger problems to fix right now.
"It's been a hard blow to us all. We didn't expect it to be this serious, but it's just one of those things we have to learn how to deal with in football," Schuster said. "Nevertheless, our problem is conceding too many goals, not scoring too few.
"We all want him to return, but we have to move on."
Real, which has also scored 19 goals in its last nine matches, visits Zorrilla Stadium to face a struggling Valladolid squad. But Schuster has warned his club not to overlook Valladolid because the club has a strong attack.
And Although Valladolid is near the bottom of the league, it has been solid at home with all three of its wins and an overall record of 3-1-1. On the road, Valladolid is 0-5.
"We have to expect a complicated match because they put a lot of pressure in attack," he said. "They will try to steal the ball from us and counterattack."
Real has won its last two matches 4-3. It beat Malaga last weekend in La Liga when Gonzalo Higuain scored four goals and then beat Real Union in the Copa del Rey on Tuesday - although it was eliminated from the event on away goals.
Schuster wasn't worried about the Copa del Rey and with Real Madrid turning its focus back to league play and the Champions League, the struggling side could easily close the two-point gap and return to the top of the league soon.
Real would temporarily take over the top spot in La Liga with a win Saturday. Valladolid is trying to move further away from the drop zone. It currently sits three points clear.
Also Saturday, Valencia hosts Sporting Gijon.
On Sunday, Atletico Madrid hosts Deportivo, Getafe hosts Sevilla, Almeria hosts Mallorca, Malaga hosts Villarreal, Real Betis hosts Racing, Athletic Bilbao hosts Osasuna, Espanyol hosts Numancia and Recreativo hosts Barcelona.
<< ChiSox outright MacDougal to minors
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago White Sox have outrighted the
contract of pitcher Mike MacDougal to Triple-A Charlotte.
MacDougal appeared in 16 games for the White Sox last season and did not
register a decision whi
<< Vikings S Williams doubtful, Allen questionable for Sunday
Eden Prairie, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Minnesota Vikings safety Madieu Williams
may miss Sunday's contest at Tampa Bay with a shoulder injury, while defensive
end Jared Allen's shoulder has improved.
Williams, who missed the first seven game
<< NBA suspends Nash, Barnes and Alston
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NBA has suspended Steve Nash and Matt
Barnes of the Phoenix Suns, as well as Houston's Rafer Alston, for their roles
in an altercation Wednesday.
Barnes and Alston were the main participants in t
<< NBA Southeast: Youth movement paying off in Atlanta
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Baby-faced NFL quarterback Matt Ryan has led the local
Falcons to a winning record so far this season, as have most of the members of
the Atlanta Hawks.
Led by shooting guard Joe Johnson, small forward Marvin Williams, inj
NHL Central: Hossa fitting right in with Red Wings >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It hasn't taken Marian Hossa long to find a comfort level
with his new team, the Detroit Red Wings.
When Hossa signed with Detroit this past offseason, inking a one-year deal
with the team that had just beaten him in the S
FCS Previews: Week 12 >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Here are the predictions for the top 25
games and other notable contests from week 12 of the FCS season.
GAME OF THE WEEK
No.12 William & Mary (7-2, 5-1 CAA) at No. 1 James Madison (8-0, 6-0 CAA), 1:
Rams' Jackson won't play again Sunday >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St. Louis Rams running back Steven Jackson
will not play Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers because of a strained
right thigh muscle.
"Steven's [Jackson] out, he's not traveling [to San Francisco]
Quick change: Melrose out in Tampa >>
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Lightning made a coaching change
Friday, firing Barry Melrose after just 16 games and replacing him on an
interim basis with associate coach Rick Tocchet.
Melrose was hired on June 24 af
Las Vegas Sports Consultants (LVSC) is the world’s premier oddsmaking company and the most respected authority on making the lines. Mike Seba is a Senior Oddsmaker at LVSC and has been making lines for the last six years. In our extended interview, Seba explained that there are 4-5 oddsmakers assigned to make lines for each of the major sports (pro & college football and basketball; MLB, NHL, boxing, golf). Each of these oddsmakers bring unique opinions, strengths and weaknesses to the process. Oddsmakers at LVSC are professional sports junkies who love what they do and would probably do it for nothing if you asked them, but they do get paid for it. By necessity their approach is very research-oriented and concise, since with millions of dollars at risk there is little margin for error.
“You either have a passion for it or you don’t,” Seba said.
“The #1 thing for us is to make a line for each game that creates good two-way action. We do this by drawing from past experiences and applying them to current situations. People think it’s much more complicated, but it’s not. “Divided action means the sportsbook is guaranteed a profit on the game because of the fee charged to the bettor (called juice or vig – typically $11 bet to win $10).
Power ratings are the oddsmaker’s value of each team and are used as a guide to calculate a "preliminary" pointspread on an upcoming game. The power ratings are adjusted after each game a team plays. Examples of non-game factors that would require an adjustment to a team's power rating are key player injuries and player trades.
Once a game’s power rating based pointspread is determined, the oddsmaker will make adjustments to that line after considering each team's most recent games played and previous games played against that opponent. Also, adjustments are made after reading each team’s local newspapers to get a sense of what the coaches & players are thinking going into the game.Since the oddsmaker’s ultimate goal is equally dividing the sports betting action, public perception and sportsbook betting patterns must be taken into account. For example, the public might have heavy betting interest week after week on a popular college football betting team such as USC. If an oddsmaker comes up with a preliminary line of USC -7, then an adjustment up to -7.5 or -8 would be made in response to the public’s expected USC bias.
The last step in the line-making process for each oddsmaker is taking one final look to determine whether or not the line "feels right." This is where common sense and past experience with how games are bet enters into the picture.A round-table discussion among the 4-5 oddsmakers involved in making the line for each sport is then conducted and a consensus line is decided upon by the Odds Director before it is released to the sportsbooks. Of the 4-5 oddsmakers, generally the 2 most respected opinions are weighed more heavily by the Odds Director before he decides on the final line.
Experts working for the individual books having a strong opinion on the game
Individual books having players who consistently bet with certain tendencies (such as an extreme bias toward favorites or toward a certain popular team like USC)The purpose of these adjustments, like all line adjustments, is to more equally divide the betting action.
Once betting begins, sportsbooks can adjust the line at any time. In doing so they attempt to make more attractive the team that is getting less action. By moving the line, sportsbooks can influence how the public bets on a particular game.For example, if the pointspread on a game is 7 and most of the money is coming in on the underdog (taking the +7), sportsbooks will then move the number down to 6 ½ to try and attract money on the favorite.
Moving the line is the oddsmaker's effort to balance betting action, and often times such moves can have a major impact on a bettor’s decision. Oddsmakers can also change the line depending on various event-related factors such as player injuries or weather. Obviously, if the line comes out a week ahead of the event (which is the case in football), there is much that could happen during the week leading up to the event that could affect the line. Oddsmakers have to determine if any changes are necessary and send out an "adjusted line."“The main objective is that our clients get equal action on both sides,” Seba said. “We’re not trying to pick the team that covers the spread, we’re trying to make it a coin flip, a tough decision (for the bettor). If we’ve done that, we’ve done our job.”
To visit this internet sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your sports betting needs and World Series odds.
MySportsbook.com Posts Heisman Trophy Odds
With 3,919 passing yards, 32 touchdowns and a mere seven interceptions last season, combined with a powerful South Bend Heisman legacy, odds makers at MySportsbook.com have given Notre Dame senior quarterback Brady Quinn the best Heisman Trophy odds at 5-2.
Quinn isn’t the only big man on campus this season. Oklahoma junior running back and 2004 Heisman runner-up Adrian Peterson, listed at 7-2, rushed for a combined 3,033 yards in his first two years as a college player and will give Quinn a run for his money.
This online sportsbook has also listed Troy Smith, Ohio State senior quarterback, as another strong favorite to win the 72nd Heisman Trophy. A 7-1 bet, Smith threw for 2,282 yards last season and also led the Buckeyes to a convincing 34-20 victory over Quinn and the Fighting Irish in last season’s Fiesta Bowl.
Current betting odds Heisman trophy are:
| Brady Quinn (QB, Notre Dame) Adrian Peterson (RB, Oklahoma) Troy Smith (QB, Ohio State) Michael Bush (RB, Louisville) Steve Slaton (RB, West Virginia) Brian Brohm (QB, Louisville) Chris Leak (QB, Florida) Mike Hart (RB, Michigan) Ted Ginn (WR, Ohio State) Darius Walker (RB, Notre Dame) Drew Tate (QB, Iowa) Marshawn Lynch (RB, Cal) Kenny Irons (RB, Auburn) Chad Henne (QB, Michigan) Kyle Wright (QB, Miami) Drew Stanton (QB, Michigan State) Kenneth Darby (RB, Alabama) JaMarcus Russell (QB, LSU) Drew Weatherford (QB, Florida State) Blake Mitchell (QB, South Carolina) Reggie Ball (QB, Georgia Tech) |
5-2 7-2 7-1 10-1 10-1 12-1 12-1 18-1 18-1 20-1 30-1 35-1 35-1 40-1 50-1 50-1 60-1 60-1 60-1 60-1 60-1 |
For complete NCAA Football odds visit MySportsbook.com.
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