Betting Blog

Hodgson ready for Oslo outing

Andy Charles — Fri, 25 May 2012 12:40:07 +0000

As England get set for the first of their pre-European Championship friendlies against Norway on Saturday, new manager Roy Hodgson will be looking to get the most information out of the 90 minutes in Oslo.

The newly appointed Three Lions boss, who has been brought in at relatively short notice ahead of the major tournament in Poland and the Ukraine this summer, has very little time to get a good look at his players before the competition gets started.

It will be interesting to see what side he puts out against the Norwegians, and how the soccer betting markets look ahead of the game, given that the Scandinavians were hammered Wales in one of their most recent outings.

The likes of Norwich goalkeeper John Ruddy and Arsenal winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will be hoping to get some game time and they really should expect to, considering the experience of most of the rest of Hodgson’s squad.

With England short of options in attacking positions, a single decent performance from the likes of Jermain Defoe or Danny Welbeck could earn them a place alongside Wayne Rooney, when the Manchester United player returns from suspension at the European Championships.

Rooney’s suspension should make for an interesting England top scorer betting market.

The combinations in midfield will also be interesting, with Hodgson looking to get the right balance in the middle of the park to take on the likes of France, Sweden and the Ukraine in the group stages.

With Gareth Barry set for a starting role after a fine season with Manchester City it will be interesting to see where the likes of captain Steven Gerrard, Scott Parker and Frank Lampard will feature.

Expect whatever England side that takes the field in Oslo this weekend to have a bit more energy about them than an ordinary friendly, with places in Hodgson’s first XI up for grabs.

NFL Free Agents

Andy Charles — Thu, 24 May 2012 11:37:54 +0000

Free agency – a situation that often sees mega-bucks change hands and then franchises getting little return for their money. Who would spring to mind in that category? How about guys like Vincent Jackson, Carl Nicks and Mario Williams, who will all have difficulty being worthy of their monumental contracts.

But underlying that fact is that there are plenty of very good free agent buys – players signed to solid well deserved sensible contracts who will give you a great return for your money. The market provides plenty of excitement for fans and punters who bet on NFL.

So to help, here’s three guys who we think will slot very nicely into this category this year and give their new clubs a fantastic return on their investment.

One of the stalwarts at the Colts over the past few years has been Jeff Saturday but its all change in Indianapolis and Saturday has become a Packer. He looks an ideal fit for the organisation and his signing guarantees that the Packers will have steady play at the center position in 2012 after losing Scott Wells. There is plenty of young talent on the Green Bay offensive line and Saturday’s experience will help them continue to improve while bringing in stability and leadership.

It was a complete shock when Eric Winston was released from the Houston Texans and it was only a matter of time before somebody took advantage of that strange decision. That “somebody” ended up being the Kansas City Chiefs and Winston and it is one of the more safe NFL Bets as he is sure to provide a real improvement on their offensive line especially as a run blocker for the returning Jamaal Charles. The Chiefs have a surprisingly talented and deep roster. The addition of Winston, along with the return of Charles, could be enough to make the Chiefs offense exciting in 2012.

The Patriots always use the free agency system well and with the signing of Brandon Lloyd they may well have struck gold again. Opposite Wes Welker he should offer a really potent dual threat especially as it will allow Tom Brady to use him going deep. Despite not being considered among the top wide receivers that changed hands this offseason, Lloyd could have the greatest impact out of all of them. With Tom Brady throwing him deep balls, Lloyd should be among the most productive receivers in the NFL in 2012.
There will always be big free-agency “busts” but we would be very very surprised if any of these three came close to adding to those statistics.

Fed can make it seven – Sampras

Andy Charles — Wed, 23 May 2012 14:06:30 +0000

Pete Sampras feels Roger Federer can win a seventh Wimbledon title this year and equal his record in the process.

Many of the pundits had written off the Swiss ace two years ago, following his success in the Australian Open final – which made it 16 Grand Slam titles.

Federer has not won one of the big four tournaments since then, but his form in the last year suggests he still has another Grand Slam title in him.

Having won the SW19 crown in 2009, the 30-year-old has crashed out of Wimbledon at the quarter-final stage in the last two years.

Federer lost a five-set thriller to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga last year, having crashed out to Tomas Berdych in the last eight in 2010.

But the world number three has started 2012 in impressive fashion and has already got four titles to his name, with victories in Rotterdam, Dubai, Indian Wells and Madrid.

Despite Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal seemingly having the edge over the ‘elder-statesman’, Sampras feels Federer can still challenge the top two for the Wimbledon title this year.

Speaking to Tennis Space, the American legend said: “Not a lot separates the top three or four guys. At Wimbledon this year you’ve got a few guys who are stepping it up a little bit, but when push comes to shove I still like the top three or four guys to be in there in the last weekend.

“Roger’s been there so many times, he knows what to do. I still like Roger on the grass. He has the best game for the surface. It’s really anyone’s.”

Sampras’ former coach, Paul Annacone, is currently working with Federer and he feels having Annacone by his side will help Federer “figure a few things out” against the top two.

Don’t forget to head to www.betfair.com for all the latest odds for the French Open, plus with Wimbledon on the horizon get all the previews and tips ahead of the action at SW19 by heading over to: http://betting.betfair.com/tennis/wimbledon.

Patience the key for Waratahs

Andy Charles — Mon, 21 May 2012 11:07:20 +0000

Discipline and patience will be key to NSW coming away from Cape Town with the points required to keep alive their fast-fading Super Rugby play-off hopes, according to Michael Foley.

A proud home record (won five this season) and most miserly defence in the competition means the Waratahs might have to play a waiting game rather than risk being picked off by going gung-ho at Newlands.

Foley can take some comfort from the Reds and the Crusaders recording upsets in Cape Town last year but another issue he faces here, according to several rugby previews, is putting the shackles on Springbok backs Bryan Habana and Jean de Villiers.

The Stormers have slipped to second in the South Africa conference because of a lowly tally of one bonus point, compared to the Bulls’ six points, so they too need a result.

Foley admitted central to avoiding defeat would be knowing when to attack to improve on a record of only one victory in 13 matches overseas in the past three seasons.

“Stats would tell you that over the last two or three years that the better attacking sides have actually lost to them when the defence is set,” he said.

The outright online bets market would indicate this is a formality for the Stormers, priced at 1/4, with the tie 22/1 and the Waratahs 3/1.

The home side’s average winning margin is eight and at home it is six. Them to win by 1-12 points at 13/8 offers a more attractive way in other than the 80 minutes market.

The Waratahs, who will be without inspirational hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau, can be backed at evens to cover an eight-point start and the Sydney club have lost five games by four points or less this season.

Could Torres walk out on Chelsea?

pete — Mon, 21 May 2012 10:59:35 +0000

Chelsea striker Fernando Torres has spoken about his future, hinting that he needs serious discussions with the club about his current situation.

Since a £35m move from Liverpool, Torres has had an up and down time and he admits that he was extremely disappointed to be named on the bench for the Champions League final at the weekend.

Those over at euro2012onlinebetting.com/euro-2012-odds note how the Spaniard was of course celebrating at the end of the game and has enjoyed two trophy wins in the last month, but he still feels the need to clarify his situation at the club. He quite simply wants to play more games.

Speaking after the win in Munich, Torres said: “I have been through the worst moments of my career during the season. I felt they have treated me in a way I was not expecting.”

“It’s contradictory because I feel like I’m at a peak moment in my career, with more desire and hunger than I’ve felt in a long time, but I’ve had to spend the final on the bench.

“It was a huge disappointment when I saw the line-up, perhaps the biggest disappointment in my life. I thought I would play in this game and I couldn’t imagine not doing so.”

“We’ve had a lot of talks and we’ll talk about my future at the end of the season because the role I’ve had this season is not for me, nor is it the one I expected to play when I came here.”

“I’m not comfortable. A victory like this one against Munich does compensate, but I want them to tell me what is going to happen in the future.”

“Now I do feel like football is worth it but I’ve been through a difficult time. The worst in my career. And I don’t want to go through it again.”

A lot could depend on the Didier Drogba situation of course. If the Chelsea talisman decides to go out on a high – having helped Chelsea to European glory – Torres could be the main man.

Interesting times ahead. First of all though, Torres will be trying to win Euro 2012 with Spain who are the favourites according to those over at euro2012onlinebetting.com/euro-2012-free-bets.