Portland's Valencia to miss 6-12 months

Soccer Betting Lines

02/03/2012 - Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Portland Timbers forward Jose Adolfo Valencia will undergo surgery to repair damaged cartilage in his left knee and will be sidelined six to 12 months.

Valencia was acquired on loan from Colombian first-division side Independiente Santa Fe as a Young Designated Player, but after an MRI showed the damage, the terms of his deal were amended.

The 20-year-old will stay with the Timbers this season, but he will not count as a Young Designated Player and be placed on the Disabled List, meaning he is not counted against the team's international player allotment, either.

"Our No. 1 priority is ensuring the long-term physical health of Jose. We are pleased to have worked with his former club in Colombia on amended terms of his transfer, considering the circumstances," said Gavin Wilkinson, general manager of the Timbers.

"We are very committed to Jose as a person and as a player, and intend to return to the original terms of his transfer agreement when he returns to full health following rehabilitation."

Valencia was originally signed in December. He will have surgery Monday.

"We feel strongly about our long-term commitment to Jose and see him as a big part of the future success of this team," Wilkinson said.

Wwsandbox Soccer Betting News

<< Safety among prevalent issues for Goodell
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Armed with labor peace for the next 10 years, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell discussed a number of topics Friday in his annual state of the league address. Last year's session with the assembled m

<< Berdych, French seeds reach Open Sud semis
Montpellier, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top seeds Tomas Berdych, Gilles Simon and Gael Monfils were a trio of quarterfinal winners Friday at the Open Sud de France tennis tournament. The Czech world No. 7 Berdych handled France's Nicolas Mah

<< Derdiyok out three weeks after freak injury
Leverkusen, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bayer Leverkusen striker Eren Derdiyok will miss the next three weeks after he cut his foot on a toothbrush holder. A glass holding Derdiyok's toothbrush fell and shattered on his bathroom floor,

<< McHale will open for U.S. against Azarenka
Worcester, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A Fed Cup World Group II matchup between the United States and Belarus will get underway Saturday with a rubber between American teenager Christina McHale and newly-crowned world No. 1 star Victoria Azarenk

<< United's Lindegaard sidelined by ankle injury
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard is expected to be out for up to six weeks due to an ankle injury. Lindegaard sustained the injury in training and missed Tuesday's match against Stoke

Calhoun takes medical leave of absence >>
Storrs, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - University of Connecticut men's basketball head coach Jim Calhoun is taking an indefinite medical leave of absence, starting with Saturday's game against Seton Hall. Calhoun is suffering from spinal stenosis

Fulham's Sidwell set to miss more time >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fulham midfielder Steve Sidwell is set to spend another spell on the sidelines after sustaining a hernia injury in Wednesday's 1-1 draw with West Bromwich. The 29-year-old already missed time th

ACC sets new scheduling formats for expansion >>
Fort Lauderdale, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlantic Coast Conference has announced its scheduling format once Syracuse and Pittsburgh join the league. Syracuse and Pittsburgh were announced as new members in September, giving the ACC

Report: Clippers, Martin reach deal >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Clippers have agreed to a deal, pending a physical, with free-agent forward Kenyon Martin, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday. Martin played for the Xinjiang Tigers of the Chinese Bask

Manning mania leaving Brady an afterthought >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's not every Super Bowl where the team with the league's worst record gets as much attention as the two that will be competing for the NFL's most cherished piece of sterling silver. Or when Chad Och

Online Sportsbook Football Betting

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.”

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts US credit cards