Germany faces tougher test against England

Soccer Betting Lines

09/13/2007 - Shanghai, China (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Germany flexed its muscle in the opening match of the Women's World Cup on Monday, setting records for most goals scored and largest margin of victory as the defending champions handed Argentina an 11-0 pounding.

On Friday, the Germans will try to continue to prove their dominance in Group A as they meet England, which played to an exciting 2-2 draw with Japan on Tuesday in its opening contest.

After a slow start, Germany got things going and managed to score five first- half goals on its way to an easy win, with Sandra Smisek and Birgit Prinz each recording hat tricks in the match.

The three goals for Prinz allowed her to move into a first-place tie with American Michelle Akers atop the all-time scoring list in Women's World Cup history with 12 goals.

It is not a matter of if, but when she will score her next goal and take sole possession of the record, but despite the lopsided score line on Monday, Prinz feels there is still room for improvement.

"It was much more straightforward than we thought it would be, although it was made easy for us because they gave us so much room," Prinz said. "The coaches did tell us that beforehand, but we didn't really want to believe it. Would I say we played to perfection? No, I wouldn't say that. OK, we scored more goals than we ever thought we would, but we still made too many mistakes. Everything has to come together for perfection."

The only improvement that Germany could make would be to get off to a better start in the first 15 minutes of the match. The Germans looked slow at the outset, but soon came to life and the goals started pouring in.

In addition to Prinz and Smisek, midfielder Melanie Behringer played a strong match, scoring a goal and setting up a few others with dangerous crosses from the wing. Renate Lingor has established herself as one of the best midfielders in the world, and while she managed to score one goal, she was not called upon to produce a stellar effort.

The Germans promise to be tested a bit more on Friday, with England boasting star midfielder Kelly Smith, who scored two goals in three minutes in the second half against Japan.

With her team trailing 1-0 and 10 minutes to play, Smith put England on her back and in the blink of an eye, had her team ahead. It will take quite an effort from Smith to give England a chance in this game, but she will be helped by improved finishing from players like Eniola Aluko and Rachel Yankey.

England would be wise to try and test a German defense that was not forced to answer many questions in its opening match. The biggest of which is whether or not goalie Nadine Angerer is able to replace longtime starter Silke Rottenberg.

Angerer proved herself to be a quality keeper in qualifying, but how she will handle the pressure of such a big stage remains to be seen.

There is plenty of talent on this England team, with defenders Alex Scott and Faye White as well as midfielders Fara Williams and Karen Carney. However, it will take quite an effort for this team to topple the mighty Germans, who have too much talent offensively to be tripped up at this point in the competition.

Germany should handle England and move one step closer to a spot in the quarterfinals, and maybe by then any remaining questions will be answered.

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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.

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