The seventh day of Euro 2008 produced two games of the highest quality. The games were a joy to watch and gave a perfect example of why we call football, ‘the beautiful game’.
The first game saw Italy fighting for survival in the competition after their comprehensive defeat at the hands of the Dutch. They knew that another defeat here, against Romania, would mean them seeing their friends and family again a little sooner than they would have hoped.
Romania, on the other hand would have been buoyed by their draw against France and were seriously looking at how they might be the surprise qualifiers from the so called ‘group of death’.
After watching Romania play in an organised, somewhat defensive way a…
Cristiano Ronaldo came off the bench to keep Portugal s hopes of automatic World Cup qualification alive, breaking the deadlock in a hard-fought 2-0 win away to Andorra in Group B.
Ronaldo, one booking away from a suspension, was named among the substitutes on Saturday by coach Fernando Santos ahead of the crunch clash against Switzerland on Tuesday.
But, after a goalless first half, Santos was forced to turn to his star man and risk Ronaldo getting a yellow card that would see him missing that crucial concluding fixture.
The Real Madrid superstar thrived on the pressure by scoring his 15th goal of the qualifying campaign to draw level with Poland s prolific Robert Lewandowski 18 minutes after his introduction, poking in a Joao Mario cross from close range.
Real Madrid have offered over 45 million euros (65 million dollars) for Valencia striker David Villa, the top scorer at Euro 2008 which was won by Spain, Spanish media reported Monday.
The amount which the club, which is looking for a possible replacement for Brazilian striker Robinho who has said he wants to join Chelsea, are willing to pay for the 26-year-old varies between 47 and 48 million euros, the web sites of sports dailies Marca and AS reported.
Valencia has so far rejected the offer but a meeting between officials from both clubs and the player s agent has been scheduled for Tuesday, AS reported.
Real s German coach Bernd Schuster has insistently demanded that the club recruit a striker if Robinho leaves the Spanish champions as he has said he would…
The Detroit Lions are coming off their second (and biggest) win of the year and head to Mercedes-Benz Stadium to take on the Atlanta Falcons in Week 16 of NFL action on Sunday. With quarterback Jared Goff unlikely to suit up for the Lions, NFL betting lines have the Lions as 5.5-point road underdogs for this Boxing Day contest.
With Atlanta needing to win out and get a bunch of help to make the playoffs, here are our best free NFL picks and predictions for Lions vs. Falcons on December 26.
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As if having three football games on turkey day wasn’t good enough for us all, we’re getting to cap off the evening with the NFL equivalent of a solar eclipse. That rare, poetic, and beautiful moment in time when the stars align and truly magical things happen:
Getting Kirk Cousins props for a prime-time game. Against Bill Belichick.
On Thanksgiving.
Now, there is some concern that Cousins might have jumped the gun by dropping an egg in Week 11 against the Cowboys, but fear not — Cousins has a reputation for doing his worst in the biggest moments, and my free NFL picks expect that to continue Thursday night.
You want a full Patriots vs. Vikings betting preview? My man Jason Logan has you covered. You want some TNF player props for some of t…
The Jacksonville Jaguars will look to stop a freefall in the AFC following their third loss in a row last week as they hit the highway to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday with Trevor Lawrence questionable with a concussion.
Baker Mayfield is trying to lead the Bucs to a division title and has a great passing matchup this week, but with more passing comes more scramble opportunities, and with a 10-week low on his rushing total, should bettors be backing the veteran’s legs?
I break down the NFL Week 16 odds and offer my free NFL picks for Jaguars at Buccaneers on December 24.
Jaguars vs Buccaneers odds
Jaguars vs Buccaneers predictions
Baker Mayfield’s rushing t…
Understanding the impact of weather on NFL outcomes is Football Betting 101. Yet, many handicappers forget to look to the skies before placing their NFL picks each week.
Rain, wind, sun, and snow will rear their ugly heads throughout the 2024 NFL season, each carrying its own unique influence. Luckily for us, Week 1 usually catches a break from Mother Nature.
Of the 16 matchups on the board, only two games are currently drawing a forecast that could alter the outcomes as well as the NFL Week 1 odds.
And like I’ll be doing each week of the season, I break down this week’s weather and the angles bettors should keep in mind before kickoff. Here’s the NFL Weather report for Week 1.
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Unai Emery is hoping Aston Villa can channel their competitive spirit once more as they aim for a first home win of the season against Everton.
Villa have so far won both of their away matches against West Ham and Leicester City by a 2-1 scoreline, digging deep to get their six points on the board.
However, they struggled at home against Arsenal, losing 2-0 despite having more attempts and creating a higher expected goals tally.
And despite Everton s recent struggles, Emery expects them to have to fight for the three points when they face off at Villa Park.
Every game is difficult, but we compete, Emery said. We did against Arsenal as well. We compete really well.
Competitive is what we want to be, but we always want to improve and try to perfor…
Steph Houghton has not been named in England s squad for the upcoming Euro 2022 tournament.
Lionesses manager Sarina Wiegman named her 23-woman squad on Wednesday, and included recently recovered Manchester City forward Chloe Kelly and Chelsea s Fran Kirby.
There was no place for former captain Houghton, though, who has not played since January after suffering an Achilles injury.
The Manchester City defender has appeared at five major tournaments for England and made 121 appearances so far in her international career.
Speaking at a media conference for the squad announcement at St George s Park, Wiegman confirmed: It was a hard decision [to leave Houghton out], but she s just not ready to compete.
We set a plan in place with her for her a…
Marseille ended the year two points clear at the Ligue 1 summit after seeing off Lille 2-1 on Sunday.
Belgian striker Michy Batshuayi netted a half-volley in the 69th minute as Marseille ensured they stayed top of the table heading into the two-week winter break.
Batshuayi, who was given the nod ahead of Dimitri Payet after the Frenchman was dropped by coach Marcelo Bielsa due to poor training performances, controlled Florian Thauvin s cross before turning and firing the ball into the top corner of the net.
The match-winner came eight minutes after Idrissa Gueye equalised for Lille, cancelling out Marseille s first-half opener at the Stade Velodrome.
Marseille hit the front fortuitously in the 32nd minute when Lille s Nolan Roux sent the ball into his ow…