Matchday 1 underway as 10-man Liverpool earns draw at Porto

Soccer Betting Lines

09/18/2007 - Lisbon, Portugal (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ten-man Liverpool FC came from a goal down to start their UEFA Champions League Group A schedule with a point at Porto as Matchday 1 got underway Tuesday.

Liverpool, a five-time champion of Europe's most prestigious club tournament, fell behind early at Estadio do Dragao with Lucho Gonzalez beating Pepe Reina from the penalty spot after the Liverpool goalkeeper had knocked down Tarik Sektioui, who broke into the box after a ball from the offensive third.

The visitors answered less than 10 minutes later on their first real threat of the game after a Steve Finnan cross into the box. The ball was then headed back across by Sami Hyypia to Dirk Kuyt, who headed home for his first UEFA Champions League goal for Liverpool.

Porto, which was the more aggressive side for much of the contest, was given a boost in the 58th minute when Liverpool winger Jermaine Pennant was shown his second yellow for a hard tackle. But the home side was unable to capitalize on the advantage as Liverpool packed its defense in and limited the chances against.

In the other Group A match Tuesday, Marseille earned a 2-0 victory over Besiktas to take the top spot early on. Second-half goals by Julien Rodriguez and Djibril Cisse were the difference in the game.

In Group B action, Norwegian side Rosengord earned a 1-1 draw with English Premier League giants, Chelsea, at Stamford Bridge. Miika Koppinen got the final touch to an in-swinging free kick in the 24th minute to give the underdogs the early lead before Andriy Shevchenko headed home a Florent Malouda cross in the 53rd minute. In the other Group B match, David Villa struck midway through the second half to give Valencia a 1-0 win at Bundesliga side Schalke 04 to take the top spot in the group.

Group C saw defending La Liga Champions Real Madrid earn a 2-1 victory over Werder Bremen behind goals by Raul and Ruud van Nistelrooy. Those goals were scored on either side Werder's Boubacar Sanogo's tally. The other match in the group saw Olympiakos draw 1-1 with Lazio. A late goal from captain Luciano Zauri gave Lazio the share of the points after winger Luciano Galletti gave the home side the early lead. The game was played behind closed doors as a UEFA punishment for crowd trouble at Olympiakos's home match with AS Roma last season.

In Group D, AC Milan opened the defense of their Champions League crown with a 2-1 win over Benfica after first-half goals by Andrea Pirlo and Filippo Inzaghi. Nuno Gomes scored a late goal for Benfica to pull one back. The other Group D match saw defending Scottish Champions Celtic FC fall to Shakhtar Donetsk 2-0 after the Ukrainian side scored two quick goals eight minutes in. Brazilian striker Brandao opened before Cristiano Lucarelli added a second with a diving header two minutes later.

UEFA Champions League Groups E, F, G and H open play Wednesday to close out Matchday 1 of the European club championship.

Wwsbgglobal Soccer Betting News

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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

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Betting Football

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.