United's Emilio named player of the week

Soccer Betting Lines

09/11/2007 - Washington, D.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - D.C. United forward Luciano Emilio earned his third Major League Soccer Player of the Week award Tuesday after scoring four goals in two games last week.

Emilio had two goals in a 2-2 tie with Chivas USA on Thursday, then added two more goals in a 4-2 win over New England on Sunday.

He is the first United player to ever win the award three times in one season. He was also honored for weeks 11 and 18.

United players have won six of the 23 weekly awards this year. Ben Olsen (two) and Nicholas Addlery (one) have also won for D.C. this season.

Emilio leads MLS with 18 goals this season. He already has two more goals than Jeff Cunningham had for Real Salt Lake last year to lead the league.

The MLS record for most goals in a year is 27, set by Tampa Bay's Roy Lassiter in 1996.

D.C. (14-6-4) has a four-point lead over New England in the Eastern Conference and is also four points in front of Houston for the best record in MLS. United is 14-3-4 since starting the year with three straight losses.

United puts their eight-game unbeaten streak on the line Wednesday when they host Real Salt Lake.

Below are the 2007 Player of the Week Winners:

Week 1: Jeff Cunningham (Real Salt Lake)

Week 2: Eddie Johnson (Kansas City Wizards)

Week 3: Maykel Galindo (Chivas USA)

Week 4: Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy)

Week 5: Dwayne De Rosario (Houston Dynamo)

Week 6: Taylor Twellman (New England Revolution)

Week 7: Juan Pablo Angel (New York Red Bulls)

Week 8: Eddie Johnson (Kansas City Wizards)

Week 9: Eddie Johnson (Kansas City Wizards)

Week 10: Ben Olsen (D.C. United)

Week 11: Luciano Emilio (D.C. United)

Week 12: Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo)

Week 13: Nicholas Addlery (D.C. United)

Week 14: Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo)

Week 15: Juan Toja (FC Dallas)

Week 16: Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Columbus Crew)

Week 17: Ante Razov (Chivas USA)

Week 18: Luciano Emilio (D.C. United)

Week 19: Juan Pablo Angel (New York Red Bulls)

Week 20: Jozy Altidore (New York Red Bulls)

Week 21: Maykel Galindo (Chivas USA)

Week 22: Ben Olsen (D.C. United)

Week 23: Luciano Emilio (D.C. United)

Wwwalpscasino Soccer Betting News

<< Blue Jays sign McDonald to extension
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Blue Jays have signed shortstop John McDonald to a two-year contract. The deal is worth $3.8 million and extends him through the 2008 and 2009 seasons. McDonald, 32, is batting .252 with

<< Drake moves ahead of San Diego in Mid-Major Poll
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After coming up just two points shy of first-place last week, Drake edged past San Diego by one point in the Mid- Major Top-10 poll announced by The Sportsbook Betting Lines on Tuesday. Both teams received e

<< Chiefs bring in K Rayner
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Kansas City Chiefs have agreed to terms with kicker Dave Rayner on a two-year contract. Rayner spent last season with the Green Bay Packers and connected on 26-of-35 field goal tries with 31 extra poin

<< FCS weekly honors go to Hightower, Loucks, Robinson and Ford
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Richmond running back Tim Hightower, Fordham safety Matt Loucks, Jacksonville State linebacker Drew Robinson and Prairie View safety Vallice Ford were named as national players of the week by The Sports Ne

<< Rangers activate McCarthy
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers activated right-handed pitcher Brandon McCarthy from the 15-day disabled list. McCarthy, who has been on the DL since August 11 with a stress fracture in his right shoulder blade, wil

Federer will play in Davis Cup playoff this month >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roger Federer has decided to play Davis Cup for Switzerland this month. The Swiss will face the Czech Republic in a playoff on an indoor carpet in Prague from September 21-23, with the winner joining ne

Offensive mentality critical to growth of MLS >>
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Major League Soccer is an up-and-coming league in the United States, but for it to get to the level Commissioner Don Garber envisions, the product on the field needs to continue on its current growth

Browns deal Frye to Seattle >>
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Browns have reportedly traded quarterback Charlie Frye to the Seattle Seahawks. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported the Seahawks actually made a pair of trades on Tuesday with both invo

This Week in Auto Racing September 14 - September 16 >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - NASCAR begins the "Chase for the Nextel Cup" this Sunday in New Hampshire, while across the pond, the Formula One championship heats up both on and off the track. NASCAR Nextel Cup Sylvania 3

CFB - Blowout City >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The four most important games this past Saturday all fell under the category of "decisive victory" for the winning team - LSU destroyed Virginia Tech, Oklahoma did the same to Miami-Florida, Oregon took care

Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.

Anybody who knows about online sports betting knows MySportsbook.com! They are probably the most famous offshore sports gambling website located on the web! After nearly 10 years of online sportsbook service, MySportsbook.com is still impressing their visitors with great customer service, live odds, fast payouts, and an easy-to-use website. MySportsbook.com has everything that die-hard sports fans want. For those looking to bet on all major sporting events, look no further. Make MySportsbook.com your one-stop shop for NFL football, college football, baseball, baseketball, boxing, and horseracing.

MySportsbook.com has one distinct advantage over all other online sportsbooks: They have been in the football gambling industry the longest and have served the most satisfied customers. So if you're in the market for a new online sportsbook for the next upcoming season, be sure to check out MySportsbook.com today! We are absolutely positive that you will not be disappointed with this company.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting lines needs.