Real Madrid goes for fifth-straight win vs. Zaragoza

Soccer Betting Lines

01/27/2012 - Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Madrid welcomes Real Zaragoza to the Bernabeu in La Liga action Saturday as the first-place club looks to secure its fifth-straight league win.

The leaders enter the weekend with a five-point advantage over rivals Barcelona, but after losing out to Pep Guardiola's men in yet another competition - Madrid was eliminated by Barcelona in Copa del Rey on Wednesday - Real will be focused on preserving its first-place position to edge the Catalans in the title race.

Real Madrid assistant coach Aitor Karanka is wary of the threat that last- place Zaragoza can pose and insists that his side is focused on rebounding from its King's Cup exit in the proper manner.

"The squad is thinking about the match against Zaragoza, which will surely be difficult," said Karanka. "Despite the shape they're in, they managed to cause an upset against us last year. The squad only thinks about winning and giving another good performance."

Real Madrid's last La Liga loss came at the hands of Barcelona on Dec. 10 as the Catalans earned a 3-1 win at the Bernabeu. Since then, Madrid has won four-straight league games by a combined score of 17-5.

Zaragoza, which sits bottom of the table with just 12 points on the season, has drawn two-straight league games and is winless in its last 12 La Liga matches. It has not won since Oct. 16, a 2-0 defeat of Real Sociedad.

Barcelona looks to close the gap on Real Madrid as the reigning European champions head to El Madrigal to face lowly Villarreal.

The Catalans have lost just once in La Liga this season, a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Getafe on Nov. 26. That result sparked a six-game unbeaten run that saw Barcelona take 15 points from a possible 18 and outscore opponents 21-5.

Villarreal, meanwhile, sits fourth from bottom on just 19 points. The Yellow Submarines defeated Sporting Gijon, 3-0, on Monday to snap a six-game winless run.

In Saturday's other two La Liga contests, Espanyol looks to extend its unbeaten run to six games when it hosts Mallorca at the Estadi Cornella-El Prat, and Athletic Bilbao looks to build upon its 1-0 win over Mallorca in Copa del Rey on Wednesday when it travels to the Teresa Rivero to face Rayo Vallecano.

On Sunday, Granada hopes to snap its three-game losing skid to climb out of the relegation zone when it faces Real Betis, Levante aims to remain in the top four when it hosts Getafe, Real Sociedad and Sporting Gijon look to bounce back from losses as the two sides meet at the Anoeta, Valencia tries to pull closer to second-place Barcelona when it heads to Racing, and Malaga searches for its first win since November when it welcomes Sevilla.

La Liga play is rounded out on Monday with Osasuna welcoming Atletico Madrid, going for its third-straight league win, to the Reyno de Navarra.

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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


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

To visit this sportsbook get to MySportsbook.com for all your online sportsbook needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.