07/12/2007 - Turin, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Czech midfielder Pavel Nedved agreed to a one- year contract extension with Juventus on Wednesday.
Nedved's contract expired at the end of the last season and he was considering retirement. He turned down an offer that would have kept him at Juventus for two more seasons.
Nedved is the former captain of the Czech national team and was named the 2003 European Player of the Year.
Juventus spent last year in Serie B as a penalty for a match-fixing scandal. Nedved remained with the club and it earned promotion back to the Serie A.
<< West Ham signs striker Bellamy from Liverpool
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - West Ham has signed Wales striker Craig
Bellamy to a five-year, $15.11 million contract.
Bellamy, 27, played for English Premier League rival Liverpool last year,
scoring seven goals.
West Ham,
<< Orioles activate Baez from DL
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles activated reliever
Danys Baez from the 15-day disabled list on Thursday, and optioned left-hander
Kurt Birkins to Triple-A Norfolk.
Baez was placed on the DL on June 16 with a
<< Marseille midfielder to miss start of season
Paris, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marseille midfielder Samir Nasri will miss
the start of the upcoming season with an ankle injury.
He was injured during a preseason friendly against league rival Bordeaux on
Saturday. Nasri, 20, is exp
<< Isles ink Aaron Johnson
Uniondale, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Islanders signed
defenseman Aaron Johnson to a one-year contract Thursday. Terms of the deal
were not disclosed.
The 24-year-old Johnson had three goals and 10 assists in 61 ga
Rangers sign Scottish international McCulloch >>
Glasgow, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Scotland international Lee McCulloch
agreed to a four-year, $2.5 million with the Glasgow Rangers on Wednesday.
McCulloch, 29, comes over from English Premier League club Wigan. He scored
four goa
Czech star Smicer returns to Slavia Prague >>
Prague, Czech Republic (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Czech international Vladimir Smicer
signed a one-year contract to return to Slavia Prague, 11 years after he left
the team to continue a great club career in France and England.
Smicer, 34, joine
Santoro reaches Hall of Fame quarters >>
Newport, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Crafty Frenchman Fabrice Santoro highlighted
Thursday's second-round winners at the $416,000 Hall of Fame Tennis
Championships.
The fourth-seeded Santoro fought back to beat Canadian Frank Da
Fulham adds defender Baird >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Northern Ireland defender Chris Baird
signed a four-year deal with Fulham on Thursday.
Baird, 25, played at Southampton last year and had been linked to a move to
Sunderland. Instead, he joins f
In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South. Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC. The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game. For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft. Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.
1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign? New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1. Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT. Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.
Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami
2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season. With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round. LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems. If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.
Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU
3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season. The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach. The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub. High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career. With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson.
Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season. The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age. It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot. This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.
Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas
It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season. On the clock: the NFC North
Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2
Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1
Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1
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Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value
If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture. Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).
For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot. The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.
TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.
"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,' it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."
"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.
Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash. Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win.
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