United downs Dynamo to clinch berth in second round

Soccer Betting Lines

11/07/2007 - Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United clinched a spot in the second round of the Champions League on Wednesday as the club handled Dynamo Kiev 4-0 at Old Trafford.

Gerard Pique and Carlos Tevez scored six minutes apart in the first half to put the Red Devils out in front, and Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo both added goals in the final 15 minutes to keep United alone at the top of Group F.

Dynamo is now winless in its last 11 Champions League matches, and will fail to advance to the knockout round again this year.

United spent plenty of time in the Dynamo half of the field early on, but lacked the final touch to finish off any of their chances.

It was a positive first 30 minutes from the home side, but they didn't move ahead until the 31st minute, when Pique scored his first-ever Champions League goal.

United won a free kick just outside the area on the right. Ronaldo drove the ball into the box and Michael Carrick got his head to it, sending the ball toward goal. Carrick's header hit off the back of Tevez' head, but it caromed to Pique at the back post, and he rose up over a defender and headed it into the right corner.

The Red Devils kept the pressure on the Dynamo defense as Nemanja Vidic sent a header just wide of the right post minutes later, but United's second goal was not far away.

Six minutes after Pique tallied his first Champions League goal, Tevez bagged his as he dropped into the midfield to collect the ball and start a run towards goal.

The Argentine slipped a pass to Rooney, who quickly returned the ball to Tevez, and he fired the ball past keeper Oleksandr Shovkovskiy from the top of the box to give United a two-goal cushion heading into halftime.

United brought backup 'keeper Tomasz Kuszczak on at halftime, and he was tested in the first few minutes but held up well. Dynamo's Diogo Rincon got free at the edge of the area and he ripped a shot that was headed for the right corner of the net, only to be denied by a sprawling Kuszczak.

Dynamo gradually found some more openings in the United defense and came within inches of pulling a goal back on the hour mark.

Marjan Markovic took possession of the ball inside the area on the right and sent a cross through the face of goal for Rincon at the back post. The Dynamo striker lunged for the ball but it was just out of his reach and rolled harmlessly out of play.

Tiberiu Ghioane then forced another good stop from Kuszczak in the 70th minute, but United responded with their third goal of the match to put the result out of reach.

Luis Nani lobbed a perfect ball into the path of Rooney from the right flank. The England international then got to the ball and drove it into the back of the net with a first-time strike from the penalty spot.

Ronaldo then capped the win in style as he carried the ball down the left flank, made a nice move to free himself from a defender, and blasted the ball inside the far post.

In the group's other contest, Roma earned a 2-2 draw with Sporting Lisbon as an own goal from Sporting's Anderson Polga in the 89th minute handed the Italian club a point. Roma remains three points clear of the Portuguese club in second place, but is now five points behind leaders Manchester United.

Barcelona took sole possession of first place in Group E as the Catalan side took care of Rangers 2-0, while Lyon beat Stuttgart 4-2 to move to within one point of Rangers in second place.

Group G saw Inter Milan get two goals each from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Esteban Cambiasso in the club's 4-2 win over CSKA Moscow, while Turkish side Fenerbahce stayed just one point behind Inter with a 2-0 win against PSV Eindhoven.

Arsenal had a chance to clinch a spot in the knockout round as well, but was held to a 0-0 draw by Slavia Prague, while Sevilla won its third game in four matches as it beat Steau Bucurest 2-0. Arsenal can now clinch a second-round spot with a draw in either of its final two games, while Sevilla can also ensure a knockout-round berth with a win over Arsenal in its next match.

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Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

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