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03/12/2010 - London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Last weekend's 2-1 loss at home against fellow relegation-strugglers Bolton did not sit well with West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola.
But he is calling on his team to recover and pull off a stunning win at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea on Saturday, which would move the Hammers closer to safety.
West Ham is currently three points above the bottom three with 27 points, and Zola has said that he believes 37 or 38 points will be enough to ensure survival.
With that in mind, last weekend's loss is even more frustrating because in the eyes of the manager they gave away a great chance at adding to their point total, something that will be difficult to do with away games at Chelsea and Arsenal the next two weeks.
"We have to pick ourselves up and go again this week as we have a massive game to come at Chelsea," Zola told the club's official website.
"I told the players that we lost three points that we should have won and we need to get them back as soon as possible. I don't care that we are playing Chelsea on Saturday or Arsenal after that. We are going to go to Stamford Bridge and fight for our lives. I have no doubt about that."
Zola's men have lost three of their last five games with two more tough matches in the near future, but one thing that will help their cause on Saturday is a goalkeeping crisis for Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti.
With first-choice keeper Petr Cech sidelined by a calf injury, Ancelotti no doubt was disappointed to see backup netminder Hilario suffer an abductor injury in last Sunday's 2-0 win over Stoke City in an FA Cup quarterfinal.
Those injuries have forced Chelsea to turn to Ross Turnbull and Rhys Taylor in goal, with that duo likely to have to play against Inter Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Chelsea has lost two of its last three games in the Premiership, which has dropped the club two points behind Manchester United in the league table.
Ancelotti's men have a game in hand on United, but they must return to winning ways with Arsenal also carrying 61 points into this weekend's games.
The Gunners will visit the KC Stadium to face second-from-the-bottom Hull City, while fourth-placed Tottenham hosts Blackburn.
Manchester City is level on 49 points with Spurs and they visit Sunderland, Birmingham entertains Everton, Wigan travels to Bolton with both sides in the bottom half of the league, Wolverhampton and Burnley meet up at Turf Moor and Aston Villa invades Stoke City.
<< Eagles bring back WR Baskett
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Eagles announced Friday
they have signed wide receiver Hank Baskett to a one-year contract.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Baskett spent his first four years in th
<< Karl to miss remainder of Denver road trip
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Denver Nuggets coach George Karl will miss the
remaining three games of the team's road trip as he continues his treatment
for neck and throat cancer.
Karl missed the opening game of the trip on Wednesd
<< Bengals make it official with Bryant
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Bengals announced the
signings of wide receivers Antonio Bryant and Chris Davis Friday.
Terms of the contracts were not released, but Bryant's deal is believed to be
for $28 million
<< George Karl to miss 3 more road games
DENVER (AP) -George Karl will skip the last three games on the Denver Nuggets' road trip as he adjusts to a feeding tube that was placed into his stomach as part of his cancer treatment.The Nuggets coach has already missed two games since being diag
Losing starts at the top >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - March is when college basketball vaults to
the top of the sports scene. It also happens to be when I really start to pay
attention to the college game with an eye on June's draft.
Conventional wisdom says
Owls top Bonnies to start quest for A-10 three-peat >>
Atlantic City, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Juan Fernandez scored 17 points and doled
out seven assists, as No. 17 Temple advanced to the semifinals of the Atlantic
10 Tournament with a solid 69-51 victory against St. Bonaventure at Boardwalk
Hall.
Duke uses late surge to fend off Virginia in ACC quarters >>
Greensboro, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyle Singler scored 18 points and grabbed 11
rebounds, as fourth-ranked Duke pulled away late to earn a 57-46 victory over
Virginia in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament at Greensboro Coliseum.
Jon Sc
Turner's heave beats buzzer as Buckeyes survive Michigan >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ohio State star Evan Turner buried a
desperation three-pointer with no time on the clock to lift the fifth-ranked
Buckeyes to a thrilling 69-68 victory over rival Michigan in the
quarter
(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).
The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.
"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."
Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.
"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."
When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:
CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.
DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.
PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.
You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.
"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."
Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.
(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)
Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."
But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."
Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."
Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."
All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.
In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.
"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."
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