Gomez captures MVP award
Soccer Betting Lines
11/09/2006 - Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - D.C. United midfielder Christian Gomez took home the coveted 2006 Major League Soccer MVP award on Thursday as the announcement was made at Pizza Hut Park, the site of Sunday's MLS Cup.
"I'm very happy to have been nominated," Gomez said through a translator. "This will, in a way, make up for the sadness of the D.C. United fans with us not making it to the championship."
During the regular season, the 2006 MLS All-Star helped lead his team to the best record in the league (15-7-10), behind his 14 goals and 11 providers. Gomez finished second in scoring behind fellow MVP candidate, Jeff Cunningham (16 goals), tying for first with Cunningham in assists.
Gomez was a two-time Player of the Week winner, notching his first after a two-goal opening half performance in United's 2-1 triumph over Chivas USA, while the second came three weeks later with a one goal, two assist performance as D.C. came out the 4-3 victor against the Red Bulls.
The Argentine middy did not lose his offensive threat ability in the playoffs, scoring the only two goals tallied by the D.C. squad in the three postseason fixtures. The MLS sophomore notched the 77th minute game-winner in the first leg of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, before knocking home a second-leg aggregate-winner in a 1-1 draw against New York, allowing United to move on.
"It's been a great year for Christian, and he continued with his great performance," D.C. forward Jaime Moreno said following the team's advancement to the conference finals. "He never surprises me because I knew what kind of player he was.
"That's just what he does in practice, he trains hard and he plays better every time."
Riding on the wings of Gomez is what the red and black did all season, but despite his efforts, United saw their season come to a close in a 1-0 Eastern Conference Final loss to the New England Revolution.
The 32-year-old is the first Argentinean player to win not only an individual end of the season MLS award, but the MVP, as he becomes the second D.C. player to capture the award.. Marco Etcheverry won it in 1998 for the Nation's Capital.
The other two 2006 nominees were Dwyane De Rosario, the 2006 All-Star MVP, and Jeff Cunningham, the 2006 Golden Boot winner. De Rosario will take to the pitch on Sunday for Houston, as the Dynamo and New England Revolution meet in the MLS Cup Final at 3:30 p.m. ET in Frisco.
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - French Open champion Justine Henin-Hardenne qualified for the semifinals at the $3 million season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships on Thursday. Top-seeded Amelie Mauresmo stayed alive for a berth in Saturday
<< Paterno will not coach PSU Saturday against Temple
University Park, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Penn State Nittany Lions will be
without head coach Joe Paterno on the sidelines for just the third time in his
career when his squad hosts the Temple Owls on Saturday.
Paterno went over the game
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Hall had 24 tackles and five sacks in seven games this season. For his career,
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(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Sharks try to keep their momentum going
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Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Portland Trail Blazers announced on Thursday that forward Darius Miles will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right knee next Tuesday. Miles, who has not appeared in any games this season, wil
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Antropov leads Maple Leafs past Bruins >>
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Devils edge Blackhawks in shootout >>
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Chicago
Pro Football Odds : NFC SOUTH BETTING ODDS
NFL betting action is back! At MySportsbook, all of the pro football odds are posted for the NFC North. Check out how we see the four teams in this cloudy division stacking up this year in the chase for the playoffs! Green Bay Packers (+125) - With QB Aaron Rodgers leading the offense and DC Dom Capers working his magic on defense, the Packers are a real force to be reckoned with.
Virtually nothing changed on this offense for Green Bay from last year to this year, save for the addition of rookie OT Brian Bulaga to the bunch. Expect more huge numbers from the Pack, and a relatively favorable schedule should get them over the hump and into the playoffs once again this season. My NFL Betting Predictions: 11-5, 1st place in NFC North Minnesota Vikings (+130) - There are still too many unknowns about the Vikes this year. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not.
There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.
Chicago Bears (+350) - The Bears are probably a bit of an overhyped team once again this year.No, we don't think it is plausible for QB Jay Cutler to have as bad of a season as he did last year, and we do think the additions of RB Chester Taylor and DE Julius Peppers are going to help immensely, but there's still something in the water in the Windy City that we aren't so sure about. Maybe Chicago finds its way to .500... but then again, maybe it doesn't. If Favre comes back, Cutler might be the worst quarterback in this division this year.
Detroit Lions (+1500) - The Lions are probably once again going to be the whipping boys for the rest of the teams in the NFC North, but they aren't just going to roll over and die once again. There is some real talent amassing on this team offensively, as the combination of QB Matt Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, WR Calvin Johnson, and TE Brandon Pettigrew should put a bunch of points on the board if the offensive line can even remotely hold up. The questions really lie on defense, where it feels like DT Ndamukong Suh is going to be trying to stop opposing teams all by himself. This year should show some marked improvement in the Motor City.
The Patriots will make NFL betting fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.
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