Bradley, U.S. soccer face tough questions
Soccer Betting Lines
06/30/2010 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In the wake of the U.S. national soccer team's disappointing
2-1 loss to Ghana in its FIFA World Cup round-of-16 match on Saturday, there
has been a lot of talk about the future of head coach Bob Bradley.
Will he be the coach for the next World Cup cycle, or is it time to go in
another direction?
First, the tough questions need to be asked.
Did the U.S. team reach its full potential in the tournament? Maybe.
You could argue no, given the way the bracket opened up for the team. But if
England had taken care of its business as expected, the U.S. would have
finished second in Group C and then faced Germany instead of Ghana in the
second round. Would the perception of the team's failings be the same then?
Can Bradley take this team to the next level? Another maybe.
He showed he can adapt in both the Slovenia and Algeria games, bringing in a
forward for a center back when his team needed a goal in the second half of
both games. Can you ever recall Bruce Arena - the all-time wins leader in
U.S. soccer history - make a substitution to open his team up in an effort to
get a goal during his eight-year tenure? Me neither.
There is also no guarantee there even is another level. Until U.S. soccer is
improved at the grassroots level, no coach on the planet is going to get the
team to the top of the heap.
Did certain players who were counted on to be key contributors - Clint
Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, Ricardo Clark, and the entire central defense, among
others - come up short on a number of occasions over the past couple of
weeks? You bet.
But how much of that falls on a coach instead of the players? Granted, it's
the coach's job to get the most out of his players, but he shouldn't be
responsible when Altidore and Dempsey repeatedly miss wide-open nets, or when
the central defense tandem of Jay DeMerit and Carlos Bocanegra/Oguchi
Onyewu lets players run right up the middle past them. It isn't like
Bradley had better options on the bench.
That goes back to the grassroots failings, and the lack of a player pool to
compete with the elite national teams.
Bradley did take the responsibility for Clark being on the field vs. Ghana,
however. He admitted he made a mistake when he subbed the ineffective and
mistake-prone midfielder out of the game after just over 30 minutes.
Is that mistake enough to cost Bradley a shot at another World Cup? Probably
not, but that's a decision over which U.S. soccer president Sunil Gulati will
have to deliberate.
So, did Bradley do enough to earn another cycle as the U.S. coach?
Yes. Stability is key at this point, with this player pool.
Until U.S. soccer has more to offer in terms of depth of talent, the sturdy
and dependable Bradley is as good as it gets.
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Stanley Cup betting
New York, NY – October 3, 2007 – The dress rehearsal is over! The NHL preseason has ended and now that fans have had a glimpse of what is to come it is time to hit the book! Stanley Cup odds are live at MySportsbook.com, the world’s largest online sportsbook and casino.
The Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings remain on top of the odds charts after an impressive start in the preseason. Betting lines opened for both teams at 6-1 in June. Since then the Sens have fallen to 7-1 and the Red Wings are now caught in a pack including the defending champion Carolina Hurricanes, the San Jose Sharks and the Anaheim Ducks, all at 10-1.
MySportsbook.com has also posted props on each team’s point total for the regular season. The Senators lead the charge at 108.5 followed by the Ducks at 106.5. Detroit will attempt a repeat for the prize as the Red Wings are deadlocked with the Predators at 104.5 a piece. The temporary loss of highly touted rookie Evgeni Malkin puts a lot of pressure on the stick of assistant captain Sidney Crosby - his lowly Pittsburgh Penguins are listed at 71.5.
Even if bettors are not brave enough to put their money on the underdog, an early bet on the favorites at sportsbook.com tends to produce bigger payouts than a mid-season wager. Placing a $1,000 bet last summer on the Detroit Red Wings or Ottawa Senators would have paid out to $8,000 and $10,000 respectively, opposed to a $2,500 or $3,000 payout at the beginning of the playoffs.
Stanley Cup Odds
Ottawa Senators
Detroit Red Wings
Carolina Hurricanes
San Jose Sharks
Anaheim Ducks
Philadelphia Flyers
Calgary Flames
New Jersey Devils
Buffalo Sabres
Dallas Stars
New York Rangers
Nashville Predators
Vancouver Canucks
Colorado Avalanche
Minnesota Wild
Tampa Bay Lightning
Boston Bruins
Florida Panthers
Montreal Canadiens
Atlanta Thrashers
Toronto Maple Leafs
Edmonton Oilers
Phoenix Coyotes
Los Angeles Kings
New York Islanders
Columbus Blue Jackets
St. Louis Blues
Pittsburgh Penguins
Washington Capitals
Chicago Blackhawks |
7-1
10-1
10-1
10-1
10-1
12-1
12-1
12-1
12-1
15-1
15-1
15-1
20-1
20-1
25-1
25-1
30-1
30-1
30-1
30-1
30-1
30-1
40-1
40-1
50-1
50-1
80-1
80-1
100-1
100-1 |
NHL Regular Season Points - Team Must Play 82 Games
Team
Ottawa Senators
Anaheim Ducks
Detroit Red Wings
Nashville Predators
San Jose Sharks
Calgary Flames
Philadelphia Flyers
New Jersey Devils
Buffalo Sabres
Carolina Hurricanes
Dallas Stars
New York Rangers
Minnesota Wild
Atlanta Thrashers
Montreal Canadiens
Team
Los Angeles Kings
Tampa Bay Lightening
Vancouver Canucks
Boston Bruins
Colorado Avalanche
Edmonton Oilers
Phoenix Coyotes
Toronto Maple Leafs
Florida Panthers
Columbus Blue Jackets
New York Islanders
Chicago Blackhawks
St. Louis Blues
Washington Capitals
Pittsburgh Penguins |
Over/Under
108.5
106.5
104.5
104.5
103.5
101.5
100.5
99.5
97.5
97.5
97.5
95.5
94.5
93.5
92.5
Over/Under
91.5
91.5
91.5
89.5
89.5
88.5
88.5
86.5
84.5
82.5
80.5
72.5
72.5
72.5
71.5 |
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your hockey sportsbook needs.
NFL Football Betting : Odds on NFL Division to Win the Super Bowl
NFL Super Bowl Betting
The AFC South and the NFC East are the favorite divisions to have the next Super Bowl champ among them in the NFL betting odds. But more down to the point, these football odds are in favor of the Indianapolis Colts, by far the strongest team in the AFC South, and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFC East.
Most sports fans would agree that these two teams top the list to win it all before the season even begins. In the BetUS Sportsbook football futures, the Colts are +800 in the odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Cowboys are sitting at +1000 and the Super Bowl XLIV champions New Orleans Saints at +900. In the AFC South, the Colts won the division for five straight years after the 2002 realignment, before the Tennessee Titans won it in 2008. But the Colts came back strong in 2009 to win the division again en route to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys are the favorite to win the NFC East, as well as to advance far into the post season. The Cowboys won the division last season before their horrendous loss in the NFC Divisional playoff to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings. But the ‘Boys will take that loss humbly and be ready for the playoffs this time around.
The NFC South is also very strong, at +600 in the NFL futures, considering that it is home to the defending Super Bowl champions. However, some predictions have the Atlanta Falcons with possibilities of claiming the divisional title this season in place of the Saints, as no team has won back-to-back division championships since the division realignment took place. Let’s not overlook the AFC North at +500. As TO goes to Cincinnati to join Chad OchoCinco and Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, this team looks to claim the division title again. And it is likely they will do so. The Bengals lost in the AFC Wild Card spot in a hard-fought battle against the New York Jets last season. Lest not forget the Pittsburgh Steelers, the XLII Super Bowl Champions… All these teams present interesting odds and matchups for the upcoming season, but the safest and surest bet seems to be with the Colts in the AFC South and the Cowboys in the NFC East. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
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