Montero helping Sounders FC across the river
Soccer Betting Lines
09/07/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With a record of 12-7-11, a playoff spot as the Western Conference's No. 3 seed, a U.S. Open Cup Championship, and almost half-a- million in paid attendance, Seattle Sounders FC was coming off one of the most successful expansion seasons in Major League Soccer history in 2009.
But the first half to the 2010 season didn't go nearly as smoothly.
The Sounders were 4-8-3 after a July 4 loss at the Los Angeles Galaxy, and it appeared the second-year MLS club was headed for a major letdown in 2010.
But since that loss at L.A., the Sounders have gone 5-1-2 to improve their overall record to 9-9-5.
Twenty-three-year-old Colombian striker Fredy Montero has been one of the main reasons for the recent turnaround. He scored five goals during that stretch, three of which were game-winners. He also has three game-winning assists.
Montero has 10 goals and nine assists overall this season, and is on pace to easily best his 12 goals and seven assists of last season, when he won the MLS Newcomer of the Year Award. But his contributions go well beyond the numbers.
Since joining MLS from Colombia's First Division - where he was the Golden Boot winner in 2007 and 2008 - Montero has established himself as one of the league's most consistent attackers. He has made the adjustment to a different culture and to a league that has a lot more travel, is much more physical, and has inconsistent refereeing from game to game. And he has done it all while upping his commitment to the Sounders, both on and off the field.
"He has really increased his work-rate on and off the ball for us in terms of helping us out at times defensively and getting himself into some very good offensive positions," Seattle coach Sigi Schmid told The Sportsbook Betting Lines. "He's had more touches because the guys have been more comfortable with him. They know where to find him.
"He got used to the league. It's something we talked about. He was already pretty powerful and knew how to use his body, it definitely comes into play. He realizes that some of the calls he would get in Colombia he wouldn't get here, he's fighting through some of those situations. Obviously he's one of our leaders in the game, he's one of our most important players."
Basically, Montero has transformed himself from the hotshot newcomer, into a respected leader on the team.
"I'm happy because I've earned that on the field," Montero told The Sportsbook Betting Lines through interpreter Gene Ramirez. "Obviously the responsibility is bigger with my [teammates], coaches, and the [front office], and obviously with all the fans."
Last season Montero put up big numbers as an unknown playing for an expansion team. The fact that it appears like he is going to smash his goal output from a year ago - while already topping his assist mark - is a testament to his hard work, because teams now know what to expect from the 5-foot-9 speedster.
"It is a little harder at the personal level and the collective level because the goals that I am scoring this year are starting to look like a virtue of mine," Montero said. "Last year I was not that well known in MLS."
RUNNING DOWN A DREAM
It's no secret that Montero has his sight set on a transfer to a European power at some point in his soccer career, but so far he is taking a patient approach, refining his game so that he gives himself the best chance for long- term success at the highest level.
"That is my dream and I believe it is the dream of all the players to be in the highest, most competitive leagues in all of Europe," he said. "I'm hoping that when the times comes, I go there and play there for a long time and not just one season and return like some players have done."
One driving force for Montero is the support of his family as he chases his dream.
"It is not easy at my age," he said. "Obviously I left my house at 13-years- old following my dream. I'm still following my dream. It's gratifying that I have my mom, dad, brothers and sisters living with me. It's gratifying to have them by my side."
BUMP IN THE ROAD
Seattle is coming off a 3-1 loss at New England on Saturday, a loss that snapped a seven-game unbeaten run. Will that loss send the team back into a tailspin, or was it a bump in the road to the MLS Cup playoffs?
"Right now our short-term goal is we have to make sure we make the playoffs," Schmid said. "We can't get caught looking ahead. The example I always use for players is, if you are trying to get to the other side of the river and you are walking across stones, your goal is to get to the other side of the river. But if you take your eye off the next stone you go splash and you never get to the other side."
Montero echoed Schmid's statement.
"We are taking it one game at a time and we try to view each game as if it was a playoff game, whether its a CONCACAF game, U.S. Open Cup or an MLS game."
Seattle is currently in seventh in the league table, with the top eight qualifying for the playoffs at the end of October.
FIRST TO TWO
Regardless of what happens in league play this season, the Sounders have a chance to do something no MLS team has ever done before - win back-to-back U.S. Open Cup Championships.
"Nobody has won it back-to-back since the early 80s when a New York team did it when it was basically all of the ethnic leagues all over the country," Schmid said. "Being the first team in a long time to win it back-to-back, being the first team in MLS is something that we would be very proud of. It's unique, it's different, it sets us apart. When you can be the first at something nobody can every take that away from you."
The Sounders host the Columbus Crew in the tournament final on Oct. 5 at Qwest Field.
"You don't get many chances in your lifetime as a soccer player, as a coach, to actually win a championship in your home stadium," Schmid said. "It doesn't happen in MLS Cup very often. Obviously it doesn't happen in [CONCACAF] Champions League and things like that. It is very rare that you get a chance to hoist a trophy in front of your home crowd. We are very excited about that."
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Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence
Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.
Work left to do:
Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.
Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.
DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...
West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.
Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.
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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.
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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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