Real Madrid crashes out of Champions League

Soccer Betting Lines

03/10/2010 - Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Madrid failed to advance to the quarterfinals of the Champions League for the sixth successive season as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Lyon at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday, leaving them on the short end of a 2-1 aggregate score.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored in the opening six minutes of the game to put Real in front, but a goal from Miralem Pjanic 15 minutes from time sends the French side through, while Real's hopes of hosting the final at the Bernabeu in May have been dashed.

The hosts couldn't have asked for a better start as they entered the return leg down 1-0 but scored inside of six minutes.

Guti lofted a ball over the top of the defense from his own half to Ronaldo, who got down the left wing and managed to squeeze a shot through the legs of goalkeeper Hugo Lloris from a tight angle to even things up on aggregate.

The visitors them came under attack over the rest of the first half with Gonzalo Higuain missing a number of good chances to extend the lead.

The Argentine should have scored in the 25th minute when he got behind the Lyon defense and rounded Lloris before smacking his shot off the post with an empty net staring him in the face.

Lloris then produced a good save on Higuain two minutes later to keep his team within a goal, but things began to turn around for Lyon in the second half.

The French club tightened things up in defense and began to find a few openings of their own as both Sidney Govou and Lisandro Lopez went close with long-range efforts.

However, with the aggregate score still level at 1-1, Pjanic found himself on the other end of a lay-off from Lopez and he smashed a half-volley past goalkeeper Iker Casillas.

The hosts now needed two goals in the final 15 minutes to advance, but instead it was Lyon that had the better chances with both Lopez and Cesar Delgado squandering scoring opportunities after getting past the Real defense.

Wednesday's other match saw Manchester United easily move on with a 4-0 win over AC Milan at Old Trafford.

Wayne Rooney scored a goal in each half while Ji-Sung Park and Darren Fletcher also found the net in the final 30 minutes, handing United a 7-2 win on aggregate.

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It's less than a month until the NHL hockey betting season opens at MySportsbook.com and preparations are underway for another battle in the race to hoist Lord Stanley's mug in 2007.

As cup crazy fans prepare to place their bets, one online sportsbook ,MySportsbook.com, is offering hockey betting lines on the 2007/2007 Stanley Cup , who will bring it home this upcoming season.

Despite a poor showing in last season's playoffs and the loss of Steve Yzerman to retirement, the Detroit Red Wings are early favourites at this online sportsbook with wagering odds of 6-1. The Wings will look to offensive powerhouse Pavel Datsyuk and newly appointed captain Nicklas Lidstrom to lead one of the league's most prominent franchises.

Always a threat are the Ottawa Senators, with newly acquired goaltender Martin Gerber from the Stanley Cup champion ,Carolina Hurricanes. The Sens are second best in the rankings at a 7-1 bet, and odds makers at this sportsbook are optimistic that the Ottawa squad will fare better than last season's Eastern Conference semi-final upset to the Buffalo Sabres.

Also worth noting are the defending Stanley Cup champs Carolina Hurricanes, a 10-1 bet to repeat. Behind the Canes are the New Jersey Devils, Calgary Flames, Buffalo Sabres, Philadelphia Flyers, and Anaheim Mighty Ducks all sit at 12-1. In the basement are the Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, and St. Louis Blues who all have 100-1 odds to win.

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