Ancelotti Points Claim Edge With Play

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Manchester United has lost two straight Premier League contests to help Tottenham climb back into the title race, entering the weekend tied with Spurs on 45 points apiece. United will aim to keep the pressure on City as the Red Devils host Bolton at Old Trafford on Saturday.

 

Elsewhere on Saturday, Liverpool hopes to bounce back from a 3-0 drubbing at the hands of Manchester City when it hosts Stoke City, Blackburn looks to climb out of the cellar with a result against Fulham, and West Bromwich aims to avoid dropping its third straight game as it hosts Norwich City.

 

And Sunday, Newcastle looks to build upon its stunning three-goal victory over Manchester United in its last outing as it hosts QPR, while Swansea City, unbeaten in its last three, welcomes Arsenal to the Liberty Stadium.

 

Paris, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlo Ancelotti has led three European giants in Italy and England, and the Italian now has the task of developing a fourth in France. Ancelotti was named PSG's new coach late last month, and he inherits a team at the top of the Ligue 1 standings after the first half of the season. But, the former Juventus, AC Milan and Chelsea boss needs to produce better results.

 

Kombouare was under pressure after the spending spree - and every result, even wins - were scrutinized by the club's free-spending owners.

 

Ancelotti will make his Ligue 1 debut Saturday at the Parc des Princes against Toulouse, when a win - and a convincing one - will be expected. But Ancelotti, who has changed the team's formation, knows nothing will come easy.

 

PSG managed just a 2-1 win over Locmine last week in the French Cup, as it was able to squeeze into the last 32. Ancelotti switched the club to a 4-3-2-1 for that game, but "after three days of training it is difficult to make it work," he admitted.

 

Ancelotti acknowledged he might have to "change things for the next game," but no concrete decisions were disclosed before the fixture against seventh-place Toulouse.

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.