Barcelona eyes elusive road win at Getafe

Soccer Betting Lines

11/09/2007 - Getafe, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Leo Messi isn't concerned about Barcelona's struggles away from the Nou Camp this season, saying this week "if we display our quality we can also win away from home."

Barca has struggled on the road this season - posting just one win - and will face another challenge Saturday at Getafe, which is in the bottom half of the La Liga but has just one loss at home.

Barcelona (7-1-3) has won all six La Liga matches at Nou Camp, but is 1-1-3 in five road games.

"It is a difficult place to go," Barcelona manager Frank Rijkaard said. "They are playing well at home. They have not let in many goals and they are well organized and, lately, they have found some form.

"It will be an interesting game because they want to continue their run and we want to win too."

Barcelona has a modest three-game unbeaten streak since losing its only match of the season to Villarreal, 3-1. Barca enters the weekend just one point out of the top spot in the league, and would like a good result before a break in league play.

"It would be important to beat Getafe," Messi said. "After this match there's an international break and it would be important to win before that."

Barcelona's not short on talent, just this week having three players - Carles Puyol, Ronaldinho and Messi - named to the FIFPro 11-man team Thursday.

Messi and Ronaldinho have teamed as one of the most dynamic tandems in the La Liga and the world, and offseason signing Thierry Henry has been improving his play with the two fellow stars.

Messi is tied for the league lead with seven goals, and Ronaldinho and Henry have five apiece.

"Hes (Ronaldinho) a very important player for us," Messi said. "We've been playing together for a while, we like to combine with short passes but that doesn't mean I don't have an understanding with Henry."

Also on Saturday, Valencia hosts Real Murcia.

On Sunday, Real Madrid hosts Mallorca. Deportivo hosts Racing, Villarreal hosts Sevilla, Almeria hosts Atletico Madrid, Real Valladolid hosts Levante, Real Betis hosts Real Zaragoza, Recreativo hosts Osasuna and Espanyol hosts Athletic Bilbao.

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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

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