Dutch, Spain both eye history-making victory

Soccer Betting Lines

07/10/2010 - Johannesburg, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - History will be made at Soccer City on Sunday in the final of the FIFA World Cup as either the Netherlands or Spain will claim its first-ever World Cup title.

One of the two sides will become the eighth nation to win a World Cup, and while the Dutch have appeared in the finals on two other occasions, in 1974 and 1978, this is uncharted territory for Spain.

"We haven't achieved anything like this before but this team deserves everything that comes our way," said Spain striker David Villa. "It's not easy to get this far but we're hungry for more and we couldn't be happier at reaching the final. That's what we came here for and now we want to go out and win it."

This will be the second big final for Spain in two years as it beat Germany, 1-0, to win the Euro 2008 title, and as midfielder Xabi Alonso said, "if you reach the final, you want to go on and win it."

Spain has gotten to its first World Cup final with three successive 1-0 victories in the knockout stage, beating Portugal, Paraguay and Germany by the same scoreline.

The Dutch, meanwhile, have found the net seven times in their three knockout stage wins, beating Slovakia and Brazil, 2-1, before a 3-2 triumph over Uruguay in the semifinals.

"We're in the final - unbelievable," overjoyed Dutch manager Bert van Marwijk said following the semifinal win. "When I took this job two years ago, I said to the players, 'We're on a mission, and we just have to believe in ourselves.' We're only a small country but we're through to the final, that's just unbelievable. We last made the final 32 years ago, so what we've achieved is, and I'll say it again, unbelievable."

Wesley Sneijder has also been unbelievable as he has led the team with five goals this tournament, while getting some strong support from both Arjen Robben and Dirk Kuyt on the wings.

However, if the Dutch want to complete their mission, they had better be stronger in defense as they will face a high-powered Spanish attack.

Despite scoring only seven goals in six games so far, Spain has created countless scoring chances and has controlled most of its games with a big edge in possession.

Spain manager Vicente del Bosque will have one big decision to make up top, and that is whether to start the struggling Fernando Torres alongside Villa, or go with Pedro, who played well in his first start against Germany in the semifinals.

The Netherlands has the kind of players in Robben and Sneijder who could be effective on the counter attack, but if Spain is firing on all cylinders on Sunday, it is hard to see it losing.

The Spanish have given up just two goals all tournament, and midfielder Xavi believes that if they can duplicate their semifinal performance, that he likes their chances of bringing home the World Cup.

"Holland are a great team, they've got really strong players, especially from the midfield to the attack and they're on a great run of form," Xavi said. "But we have to play our football - if we play like we did in the semifinal, we have a great chance."

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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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