The Gooners Guide to Gambling Blog

Wayne Rooney injured on luxury yacht - doh!

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 23:03:00 +0000

Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has suffered his first injury before the new season has even begun.

Rooney suffered cuts and bruises to his head after slipping on the deck of his luxury yacht in St Tropez.

Rooney was finally allowed out of the clinic when doctors were satisfied there was no serious damage.

Full story: Daily Mirror

FRANCK RIBERY SAYS : IT'S REAL MADRID OR NOTHING

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:19:00 +0000

FOOTBALL: Franck Ribery has told Bayern Munich that he wants to leave and join Real Madrid.

Franck Ribery has told Bayern Munich that he wants to leave the club and join the new generation of "galacticos" at Real Madrid.

The France international has been at the centre of a long-running saga over the past six months, with Real and Premier League champions Manchester United chasing his signature.

Bundesliga runners-up Bayern have remained adamant that they will not be selling £30m rated Ribery, but their star asset has now announced his desire to move away from Germany.

The 26-year-old wants to follow Raul Albiol, Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema in agreeing a big-money, summer move to the Bernabeu, delivering another transfer blow to United.

Sir Alex Ferguson chased Benzema, but the Frenchman snubbed Old Trafford and Ribery looks set to do the same.

"I have made up my mind, I want to leave," Ribery told L'Equipe. "It will be Real or nothing."

DJIBRIL CISSE MOVES TO PANATHINAIKOS

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 03:43:00 +0000

Former Liverpool and Sunderland striker Djibril Cisse has signed a four-year deal with Panathinaikos to complete his £7m move from Marseille.

Cisse, 27, scored 11 goals in 38 appearances in a loan spell with Sunderland in the English Premier League last season, but failed to clinch a permanent move.

He was greeted by around 3,000 fans when he flew into Athens on Thursday.

Cisse said: "I am very enthusiastic from the welcome and I have not witnessed anything like it in my life."

Cisse,reportedly going to be the highest-paid player in Panathinaikos history in a deal worth more than £2m a year

CARLOS TEVEZ LEAVES MAN UNITED LIKELY TO JOIN CITY

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 23:07:00 +0000

Carlos Tevez is expected to join Manchester City after champions Manchester United confirmed the striker is to leave Old Trafford.

Manchester United issued a statement which read: "Following contact received from Carlos Tevez's advisors last night, in advance of the deadline the club set for concluding negotiations, Manchester United announces that Carlos will not be signing a new contract with the club.

"The club agreed to pay the option price of £25.5million and offered Carlos a five-year contract which would have made him one of its highest-paid players.

"Disappointingly however, his advisors informed the club that, despite the success he has enjoyed during one of the club's most successful periods, he does not wish to continue playing for Manchester United.

"The club would like to thank Carlos for his services over the last two seasons and wishes him good luck for the future."

RONALDO DECIDED ON REAL MADRID MOVE LAST SUMMER

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 22:38:00 +0000

FOOTBALL: Cristiano Ronaldo has admitted he made up his mind to leave Manchester United last summer

Madrid conducted a long and public pursuit of Ronaldo last year but it proved ultimately unsuccessful as the 24-year-old remained at Old Trafford.

But despite staying in the Premier League, and helping United retain their title, Ronaldo claims he made up his mind to leave after the Champions League triumph over Chelsea a year ago.

"After we won the European Cup. I thought there is no more I can achieve here," the Portuguese player told the News of the World.

"And when you have done all you can, you know it is time for a new challenge. I stayed one more season and it was nice to make it three titles in a row but it was my dream to play for Madrid."

BIRMINGHAM CITY VISIT MANCHESTER UNITED FIRST UP

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 10:48:00 +0000

FOOTBALL: Fixtures for the 2009-2010 Barclays Premier League season have been released.

Manchester United start at home to newly-promoted Birmingham on August 15, followed by a visit to Burnley where they take on the Coca-Cola Championship play off-winners.

Liverpool start their season with a tough away fixture at Tottenham on August 15, while Chelsea will be at home to Hull.

Over at Goodison Park Everton will host Arsenal while Championship winners Wolves are at home to West Ham on the opening day

PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES for Saturday, 15 August 2009
Aston Villa v Wigan
Blackburn v Man City
Bolton v Sunderland
Chelsea v Hull
Everton v Arsenal
Man Utd v Birmingham
Portsmouth v Fulham
Stoke v Burnley
Tottenham v Liverpool
Wolverhampton v West Ham

TONY MOWBRAY NAMED CELTIC BOSS

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 21:41:00 +0000

FOOTBALL: Celtic have at last named former West Brom boss Tony Mowbray as their new manager.

Tony Mowbray ended weeks of speculation surrounding Gordon Strachan's successor as Celtic manager by signing a rolling 12-month contract with his former club.

Mowbray was given permission by West Brom chairman Jeremy Peace to open negotiations with the Parkhead club on Saturday after Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell eventually agreed to the Baggies' request for £2m compensation.

As expected, Mowbray agreed personal terms and will be joined in the east end of Glasgow by Mark Venus, his assistant at The Hawthorns, and Peter Grant, his first-team coach at Albion and a former Celtic team-mate.

Current Parkhead coach Neil Lennon will join the new management team but his role is as yet unknown.

INTER MILAN TARGET CHELSEA DUO DECO AND CARVALHO

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:52:00 +0000

FOOTBALL: Inter Milan have confirmed their intention to sign Deco and Ricardo Carvalho from Chelsea.

Both players have been linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge this summer.

"(Inter coach Jose) Mourinho has asked us for Deco and Carvalho and we are working towards making him happy," said Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport.

"Our wish is to sign both players and I have seen that the players' intention is to join us. We still haven't reached an agreement with Chelsea but I think we will do in a short time."

Carvalho, who moved to Chelsea in 2004, endured a frustrating campaign with the Blues. Injury restricted the 31-year-old to just 18 appearances this season.

Deco joined Chelsea from Barcelona last summer but the 32-year-old also suffered injuries, making just 22 league appearances this campaign.

TENERIFE, XEREX, REAL ZARAGOZA WIN PRIMERA LIGA SPOT

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 04:21:00 +0000

Tenerife, Xerex and Real Zaragoza all secured promotion to the Primera Division on Saturday with one round of fixtures still remaining in the Segunda Division.

Leaders Tenerife edged Girona 1-0, while Xerex were 2-1 winners over Huesca to ensure their place in the top flight for the first time in their history.

Zaragoza's 3-1 victory over Cordoba seals their return after just one year in the Segunda Division, with fourth-placed Hercules unable to catch the top three.

The destination of the title will be decided next weekend with just one point separating the leading three sides

UNITED ACCEPT REAL MADRID'S £80M RONALDO BID

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 20:47:00 +0000

FOOTBALL: Manchester United have accepted an £80million bid for Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid.

Manchester United have finally caved in to Real Madrid's repeated attempts to lure Cristiano Ronaldo away from Old Trafford.

United confirmed on Thursday morning they had accepted an £80million bid for the world player of the year, with a world-record deal expected to go through by June 30.

The news had been expected given that Real stated on Wednesday night talks were under way and now it is only a matter of finalising the player's personal terms before he completes a dream move to the Bernabeu.

A United statement read: "At the request of Cristiano - who has again expressed his desire to leave - and after discussion with the player's representatives, United have agreed to give Real Madrid permission to talk to the player."

SETANTA TV BROADCASTER LIKELY TO COLLAPSE

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 21:41:00 +0000

Setanta faces administration "within days" unless backers provide more funds to pay £30m it owes to the English Premier League, reports have suggested.

The broadcaster has already failed to pay the Scottish Premier League £3m it owes in television rights money. Setanta, which also shows cricket, golf and rugby union, has about 1.2 million subscribers but is losing up to £100m a year, analysts say.

Would-be customers who attempted to subscribe to Setanta through its website were on Tuesday told that it was not possible because of "routine maintenance". Meanwhile anybody trying to subscribe by phone receives a recorded message saying that "The service is temporarily out of order".

A spokesman for Setanta declined to comment on the firm's situation.

ROBERTO MARTINEZ IS WIGAN ATHLETIC'S NEW MANAGER

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 21:18:00 +0000

FOOTBALL: Wigan Chairman Dave Whelan has confirmed Roberto Martinez will be Wigan's new manager.

An official announcement on Martinez's appointment is expected to be made in the next 24 hours, but Whelan has revealed to Sky Sports News that the deal is done.

The Spaniard, who has agreed a three-year contract, emerged as Wigan's top target soon after Steve Bruce left the Latics to take charge of Sunderland.

Martinez, who spent six years as a player with Wigan and is fondly remembered by the club's fans as one of the 'Three Amigos', is one of the most highly-rated young managers in the game.

KAKA COMPLETES REAL MADRID MOVE

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 04:15:00 +0000

FOOTBALL: Real Madrid have completed the signing of Kaka from AC Milan on a six-year contract.

The Spanish giants confirmed the eagerly-awaited capture of the 27-year-old Brazilian superstar in a brief statement on their website late on Monday night.

Kaka, currently on international duty with Brazil in his homeland, underwent a medical in Recife earlier on Monday before putting pen to paper on a six-year deal.

The transfer fee is expected to be new world record at around £56million, eclipsing the £48million Real paid Juventus for Zinedine Zidane in the summer of 2001.

NEWCASTLE UTD FOR SALE AT £100 MILLION

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 21:57:00 +0000

Newcastle owner Mike Ashley has confirmed he's put the club up for sale for £100million.

More than a week after it emerged that Ashley was looking to get out for the second time since he took control, the Magpies issued an official statement setting a price as Keith Harris, chairman of investment bankers Seymour Pierce, continued his search for buyers.

The statement read: "The board of Newcastle United can today confirm that the club is for sale at the price of £100million.

"Interested parties should contact Newcastle United at admin@nufc.co.uk (or Keith Harris at Seymour Pierce) for further details.

The announcement came as no surprise, with Ashley's desperation to offload the club he bought for £134.4million in May 2007 growing by the day.

ROGER FEDERER SECURES PLACE IN TENNIS HISTORY

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 22:56:00 +0000

TENNIS: Roger Federer completed a career Grand Slam by beating Robin Soderling at the French Open.

Federer won in sstraight sets, 6-1 7-6 (7/1) 6-4 to become only the sixth man in history to win all four Grand Slam tournaments.

He also equals Pete Sampras' all-time record of 14 Grand Slam singles titles and will now be regarded by many as the greatest player of all time.

JENSON BUTTON MAKES IT SIX WINS FROM SEVEN

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 22:45:00 +0000

FORMULA ONE: Jenson Button recorded his sixth victory in seven races at the Turkish Grand Prix.

Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel finished around seven seconds behind in second and third.

Drivers' Standings
1 Jenson Button 61 points
2 Rubens Barrichello 35
3 Sebastian Vettel 29
4 Mark Webber 27.5
5 Jarno Trulli 19.5
6 Timo Glock 13
7 Nico Rosberg 11,5
8= Felipe Massa 11
8= Fernando Alonso 11

Early bookmaker odds for 2009/10 Premier League race

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Mon, 25 May 2009 04:11:00 +0000

Manchester United ended the 2008/09 season as Premier League champions on 90 points after beating Hull 1-0, and they are 11/8 chances to retain their crown next season.

Liverpool finished four points behind United in second. The Reds are 100/30 to win the league next season.

Chelsea are 4/1, Arsenal are 10/1, Manchester City are 50/1 and it's 100/1 bar those five.

Barcelona favourites for Champions League Final

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Thu, 07 May 2009 06:22:00 +0000

Barcelona have been installed as favourites to win the Champions League final following their dramatic qualification at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night.

Andres Iniesta's injury-time goal - Barca's only shot on target all night - equalised Michael Essien's early effort and sent the Spanish side through on away goals with a 1-1 draw.

Barcelona will now face Manchester United in Rome on May 27 and it's Barca who are the 8/11 favourites with Ladbrokes to lift the trophy they last won in 2006.

Defending champions Manchester United are available at 2.10, with bet365 prepared to go odds-against largely because they have big liabilities on Barca in their outright book.

bet365 spokesman Steve Freeth said: "Bookmakers don't mind draws, but we stopped patting ourselves on the back when we looked at the ante-post liabilities on Barcelona. We'll be more than happy to see Sir Alex retain the trophy."

Boylesports disagree with bet365 and Ladbrokes and and offer both Barca and ManYoo at 10/11 each.

Manchester United qualify for the Champions League Final in Rome

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Wed, 06 May 2009 11:00:00 +0000

In the end it finished 1-3 to Manchester United on the night, 1-4 overall and despite my disappointment there's no doubt in my mind that the best team won.

Apart from the goals tally, over the course of the two games Arsenal's keeper Manuel Almunia also must have made 7 or 8 extremely good saves while Edwin van der Sar was hardly pressured at all.

United played the best football, they made the most chances, they scored the most goals, they deserve to go through. We Gooners can't feel hard done by in any shape or form.

Paddy Power refunds all losing bets on Cardiff Blues

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Mon, 04 May 2009 21:17:00 +0000

Paddy Power are refunding all losing bets on Cardiff to beat Leicester following their gut-wrenchingly dramatic defeat in the Heineken Cup final semi-final at the hands of Leicester yesterday.

Martyn Williams sudden death penalty miss left punters feeling sick to the stomach having witnessed an incredible Cardiff comeback to take the game to extra time.

Cardiff were 3/4 favourites before kick off with Paddy Power and the bookie reports heavy support for the Welshmen.

Paddy Power punters who staked just over £80,000 on the Cardiff Blues either to qualify for the final or beat Leicester will have their losing stakes refunded.

The bookie can't split the two sides and have priced up the final with both Leinster and Leicester at 5/6.

Paddy Power said: "That was the least enjoyable penalty shootout ever - even the most ardent Leicester fan must feel for Martyn Williams. Cardiff's comeback was awesome and it was bad enough to see them lose like that without doing your dough as well.

"It doesn't seem right that punters should lose in that fashion so we're giving them their money back. As for the final itself, your guess is as good as mine - it's got to be a toss of a coin and maybe that's how they should have decided the semi-final!"

RELATED LINKS :
Paddy Power Bookmaker Site
Our Paddy Power review

Middlesbrough relegation from Premier League almost certain

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sun, 03 May 2009 00:04:00 +0000

Middlesbrough are priced about 1/7 to be relegated from the Premier League following their 2-0 defeat by Manchester United.

Goals from Ryan Giggs and Ji-Sung Park helped United open up a six-point lead over Liverpool at the top but it's looking bleak for Boro.

The defeat leaves Boro in 19th place and likely to be playing in the Championship next season as they're 3 points adrift with an inferior goal difference and only three games to play.

Middlesbrough's next match will go a long way to determining their fate as they make the short journey to St James' to take on Newcastle.

The Magpies, who are in action against Liverpool on Sunday, have been eased slightly for the drop on the back of Middlesbrough's defeat, but are still priced at 1/3.

Bet365 has Arsenal almost certain to finish in top four now

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 02:04:00 +0000

Arsenal's position in the top four was strengthened on Sunday as Aston Villa and Everton fought out a 3-3 draw in the Barclays Premier League.

Arsenal are now nine points ahead of Aston Villa and 10 points clear of Everton having played a game more than both clubs.

The Gunners are 1/16 with bet365 to finish once again with a top-four finish, with Everton 7/4 to finish above Aston Villa.

bet365 spokesman Steve Freeth said: "It was a hugely entertaining 3-3 draw, but a point hardly helps either side in their quest for a top four finish."

FYR Macedonian club FK Pobeda charged with "manipulation"

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 11:31:00 +0000

UEFA have charged FYR Macedonian club FK Pobeda for "manipulating the outcome of a UEFA match to gain undue advantage for themselves and a third party".

The charge relates to a 2004 Champions League first qualifying round match against FC Pyunik in Skopje, which the Armenian side Pyunik won 3-1.

The charge also implicates the president of FK Pobeda, as well as a player, with UEFA's Control & Disciplinary Body set to deal with the case on April 17.

UEFA revealed in a statement they had brought the charge, almost five years after the game was played, based on reports of irregular betting patterns and declarations from witnesses.

A statement on UEFA's website read: "UEFA has announced today that the Macedonian club FK Pobeda, its president and one player have been charged for being in breach of the principles of integrity and sportsmanship by manipulating the outcome of a UEFA match to gain an undue advantage for themselves and a third party."

Anelka injury re-opens Premier League golden boot race

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 09:50:00 +0000

The race for the English Premier League golden boot tightened on the weekend as Steven Gerrard grabbed a hat-trick and leading scorer Nicolas Anelka was ruled out for three weeks with injury.

Anelka (15 goals) leads by two from Cristiano Ronaldo (13) and Steven Gerrard (13) with Peter Crouch (11) and Robinho (11) further back in joint 4th spot.

The Frenchman continues to head the Golden Boot betting, but only just as Anelka looks likely to miss Chelsea's next game at Newcastle on April 4th.

LEADING TOP SCORER ODDS :
Anelka - 15 goals - 3.00 at Bet365
Ronaldo - 13 goals - 3.00 at Eurobet
Gerrard - 13 goals - 5.00 at Victor Chandler
Robinho - 11 goals - 21.00 at Betfred
Crouch - 11 goals - 50.00 at BetFair

Manchester United odds drift in title race after 2nd straight loss

noreply@blogger.com (Gooner) — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 10:23:00 +0000

Manchester United have drifted from 1/9 to 2/7 to win the Barclays Premier League with bookmakers following their 2-0 defeat at Fulham on Saturday.

Paul Scholes and Wayne Rooney were both sent off at Craven Cottage as a Danny Murphy penalty and late Zoltan Gera strike earned Fulham all three points.

It means Manchester United are now just four points clear of Liverpool, with both teams having played 29 games.