United hope to end road Blues at the Bridge

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02/03/2012 - London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United are not accustomed to long-standing droughts at many stadiums in England, but Stamford Bridge is certainly one of the few exceptions.

The Red Devils square off against Chelsea in West London on Sunday and will be looking to banish their 10-year run at the Bridge without a Premier League win.

United last secured three points at Chelsea in April of 2002, a 3-0 win with goals coming from Paul Scholes, Ruud van Nistelrooy, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Since then, the club has suffered six losses and three draws to confirm Stamford Bridge as one of United's few "bogey grounds" in recent memory.

Over the last seven seasons, the two clubs have dominated the Premier League title scene with United winning the league four times to Chelsea's three. Manchester United finds itself in yet another tight race for the championship, tied with Manchester City for first place on 54 points, while Chelsea has stumbled this season under new manager Andre Villas-Boas, falling to fourth place where it sits 12 points adrift of the leaders.

But despite some uncharacteristic performances from the Blues this season, United boss Sir Alex Ferguson is still wary of the role Chelsea can play in the title race and acknowledged that his side is in for a tough encounter Sunday.

"It's not an easy game going to Stamford Bridge, we've not beaten them since 2002," Ferguson said. "The last seven years we've fought with them for league titles so you expect it to be a hard game and it will be."

It's a stigma that has not just hovered around this United team in the week leading up to the clash, but in years past as well.

"We've got a terrible record at Stamford Bridge," said Wayne Rooney before last year's fixture at Chelsea, which ended with a 2-1 loss for United. "It's not been a good place for me, with United and Everton - I even broke my metatarsal there in 2006 and nearly missed the World Cup.

"You get these strange records in football and there's no way to explain them. I certainly don't know why we've found it so hard at Chelsea because our away record is very good overall."

A win for United on Sunday could be enough to bring the Red Devils into sole possession of first place in the league if City doesn't take care of business against its own London foe on Saturday.

The Citizens, coming off a disappointing 1-0 defeat at the hands of Everton on Tuesday, will rebound with a home tilt against Fulham, which is fresh off of a 1-1 draw with West Bromwich.

In North London on Saturday, Arsenal will welcome Blackburn to the Emirates with Rovers looking to climb out of the relegation zone. The Gunners have still not claimed a Premier League win in 2012, suffering losses to Fulham, Swansea City, and Manchester United and playing to a scoreless draw with Bolton in their most recent outing.

Rounding out Saturday's Premier League action, Norwich City hosts Bolton at Carrow Road, QPR welcomes Wolverhampton to Loftus Road, Stoke City faces Sunderland at the Britannia, West Bromwich and Swansea City meet at the Hawthorns, and Everton heads to the DW Stadium to face last-place Wigan.

Leading up to the massive clash at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, Newcastle welcomes Aston Villa to Sports Direct Arena. The Magpies are looking to build upon their 2-0 win over Blackburn in their last outing, while the Villans hope to extend their unbeaten run in Premier League play to four games.

The lone EPL fixture on Monday pits two top-six teams against one another as sixth-place Liverpool welcomes third-place Tottenham to Anfield.

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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. 

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.

FOOTBALL BETTING

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After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

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