Arnaud leads Kansas City to draw at Philadelphia

Soccer Betting Lines

09/04/2010 - Chester, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Davy Arnaud scored in the 70th minute and the Kansas City Wizards tied the Philadelphia Union, 1-1, on Saturday afternoon in Major League Soccer at PPL Park.

Arnaud had a goal and an assist last week to lead K.C. to a 2-0 win at the Los Angeles Galaxy, and helped the Wizards earn another road result - their fourth in their last five away matches - with his fourth goal of the season.

Kansas City (7-9-6) extended its recent run of success, moving to 2-1-2 in its last five road matches and 4-1-3 in its last eight overall.

Philadelphia (5-11-6) got a first-half goal from Sebastien Le Toux, who leads the team with 10 goals, but failed to hold onto the lead. The Union don't have a shutout all season.

Stefani Miglioranzi came within inches of handing Philadelphia the lead in the 26th when his 35-yard shot hit the left post. Le Toux forced K.C. goalie Jimmy Nielsen to make a save two minutes later.

Le Toux followed with the opening goal of the game when he converted an assist from rookie Danny Mwanga. Justin Mapp, who scored in stoppage time last week to lift Philadelphia to a 2-1 win at New England, helped set up the first goal with a pass down the left to Mwanga.

Mwanga, who leads all rookies with seven goals, did most of the work from that point, driving in from the left wing before slipping a pass into the middle to Le Toux in the 30th. Le Toux finished from six yards to easily beat Nielsen.

Arnaud nearly set up the equalizer before half, but Shavar Thomas just missed getting good contact off a header that Union goalie Chris Seitz saved.

K.C. had another chance in the first minute of the second half, but Ryan Smith failed to get a shot off despite driving past Seitz, as Philadelphia defender Michael Orozco Fiscal made a sliding tackle to prevent a sure goal.

Mapp nearly turned another pass from Mwanga into the Union's second goal, but Nielsen deflected his shot to send it wide right in the 53rd.

Mwanga and K.C.'s Birahim Diop traded chances in the next 10 minutes, then Le Toux forced a save from Nielsen in the 66th.

K.C. finally rewarded Nielsen, who finished with five saves, in the 70th when Arnaud scored the tying goal directly off a free kick. Arnaud took the attempt from outside the left edge of the penalty area and drove it over traffic, then Seitz, and into the upper-right corner.

Wizards rookie Teal Bunbury had the best chance for either side over the final 20 minutes, but his shot from a tight angle in the 77th minute was handled by Seitz, who made his fourth save of the match.

Philadelphia hosts the Chicago Fire on Sept. 11 in its next match. Kansas City is off until Sept. 19, when it visits Chivas USA.

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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.