11/18/2008 - Portsmouth, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Portsmouth boss Tony Adams fears that key midfielder Lassana Diarra may be sidelined for several weeks with the ankle injury he suffered in the goalless draw at West Ham United.
The 23-year-old former Arsenal and Chelsea star was forced to leave Upton Park on crutches, but has still been forced to link up with France who will assess the problem themselves.
"We have a lot of injuries. Sol Campbell has gone down during the week and so has Niko Krankjcar," Adams told the Portsmouth News. "Niko has an ankle injury. He got a hit where he had his operation and it's flared up.
"Lassana's our most influential player and has turned his ankle. It was unintentional, but the player's weight has come down on him. It could be a bad one.
"I'm not a physio, but in my experience you are looking at weeks out when you do something like that. At a club like Portsmouth injuries like that have an effect.
"We haven't got the luxury the big teams have of having a massive squad."
(Courtesy of sportbox.tv)
<< NFC East: For Eagles, a feat to be tied
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - What probably is considered the lowest point of what's
becoming a season of failed expectations for the Philadelphia Eagles came this
past Sunday in a game the puzzling team actually didn't lose.
Then again, the Eagles did
<< Villarreal's Llorente out a month with leg injury
Villarreal, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Villarreal striker Joseba Llorente will
miss the next month after suffering a leg muscle injury.
The in-form forward has scored nine goals in 15 appearances since joining the
Yellow Submarine from Va
<< Arminia Bielefeld signs Wichniarek to new deal
Bielefeld, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arminia Bielefeld striker Artur
Wichniarek has pledged his future to the Bundesliga strugglers after signing a
new contract.
The 31-year-old Poland international has scored eight of the clu
<< Everton's Moyes baffled by Pienaar situation
Merseyside, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Everton manager David Moyes is baffled
as to why South Africa are upset by his refusal to allow Steven Pienaar to team
up with the rest of the Bafana Bafana squad.
South Africa are scheduled to play C
Arshavin's 'dream' to play at Bayern Munich >>
St. Petersburg, Russia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andrei Arshavin's potential move to
one of Europe's major leagues has taken another twist after the Russia star
claimed it would be "a dream" to join Bayern Munich.
The 27-year-old midfielder
Ole Miss G Polynice done for season >>
Oxford, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ole Miss announced Wednesday that starting
guard Eniel Polynice will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing
knee surgery last week.
Polynice, a junior, averaged 10.7 points, 5.3 rebounds an
Report: Mariners pick A's bench coach Wakamatsu as manager >>
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Mariners general manager Jack
Zduriencik has reportedly settled on a new manager, and he has apparently
raided the coaching staff of a division rival in the process.
The Seattle Times r
49ers put T Jennings on IR >>
Santa Clara, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Francisco 49ers placed veteran
offensive tackle Jonas Jennings on injured reserve Tuesday with a shoulder
injury.
Jennings started the first two games of the season before leaving the cont
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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