Gilardino's brace leads Fiorentina past Roma

Soccer Betting Lines

04/25/2009 - Florence, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alberto Gilardino scored a pair of second- half goals as Fiorentina cruised to a 4-1 win over Roma at Stadio Artemio Franchi on Saturday.

Juan Vargas scored a wonderful goal six minutes into the game before Gilardino doubled the lead in the 47th minute.

Roma was then reduced to 10 men as David Pizarro picked up a second yellow card, and Gilardino tallied his second goal of the match before Massimo Gobbi put home a rebound in the 73rd minute and Julio Baptista pulled a goal back for Roma with four minutes to play.

The win lifts Fiorentina into fourth place, one point ahead of Genoa, while Roma falls six points back of the Viola.

The home side wasted little time in settling into the match and they found themselves ahead after just six minutes.

A turnover in midfield by Roma allowed Vargas to take a pass 40 yards from goal and dribble past a defender. He then unleashed a laser into the bottom right corner from 30 yards that gave Roma goalkeeper Artur no chance.

It was a brilliant individual effort by Vargas, but it was nearly canceled out two minutes later on a free kick from Baptista, whose shot went close but sailed just over the crossbar.

The Viola had a shout for a penalty kick in the 22nd minute when Stevan Jovetic was tripped inside the box by Roma's Daniele De Rossi, but the referee was not interested and he waived play to continue.

Roma came close again in the 23rd minute when Marco Motta got into the box on the right and fired wide of the near post, while a corner kick three minutes later was nodded past the left post by Christian Panucci.

The visitors had another good look at goal five minutes before the break when Francesco Totti drew three defenders and slipped a pass to Matteo Brighi at the top of the box, but with only the keeper to beat, Brighi fired wide.

After scoring six minutes into the first half, Fiorentina needed just two minutes to open the scoring in the second half.

Franco Semioli took the ball on the right wing and floated a cross to the top of the six-yard box for Gilardino, and he nodded it inside the far post to make it 2-0.

Roma was swift to carve out another good chance as Baptista beat goalkeeper Sebastien Frey with a low shot, but Fiorentina's Manuel Pasqual cleared the ball off the goal line.

Only the woodwork denied Roma a goal in the 58th minute as a free kick was cleared to the top of the box and volleyed off the crossbar by Marco Cassetti, but one minute later, Roma was reduced to 10 men.

Pizarro picked up a yellow card in the 56th minute for a hard challenge, but he got another in the 59th when he got involved in an altercation with Semioli.

Gilardino took advantage and he fired his side ahead by three goals in the 67th minute to seal the win.

The former AC Milan man appeared to be offsides when he took a long ball down from midfield, but the flag stayed down and Gilardino cut the ball past Cassetti inside the box and fired into the bottom corner.

Gilardino had a chance to complete his hat trick in the 73rd minute, but his header was stopped by Artur, who parried the ball into the path of Gobbi to slam home.

Baptista then spoiled Frey's clean sheet with a good strike into the bottom right corner with four minutes to play.

The other match on Saturday saw Udinese claim a 2-1 win over Chievo as Gaetano D'Agostino scored the winner in stoppage time.

Lesseters Soccer Betting News

<< Beltran stays hot as Mets rout Nats
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlos Beltran continued his scorching start with three hits and Ryan Church drove in three runs, as the New York Mets took advantage of some poor Washington fielding to earn an 8-2 win over the Nationa

<< Hornaday Jr. on pole for Kansas truck race
Kansas City, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ron Hornaday Jr. will start on the pole for Saturday's O'Reilly Auto Parts 250 Camping World Truck Series race at Kansas Speedway. Hornaday grabbed the top starting position after turning the best lap a

<< Lions make it official with Stafford
Allen Park, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Lions made Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford the No. 1 overall pick in Saturday's NFL Draft after signing him to a six-year contract. Financial terms were not disclosed, bu

<< Braves power past Reds for third straight win
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chipper Jones and Yunel Escobar each homered and drove in four runs, leading the Atlanta Braves to a 10-2 rout of the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Jones belted a three-run homer and ad

<< Paul helps Hornets sting Nuggets in Game 3
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Paul posted game-highs with 32 points and 12 assists as the New Orleans Hornets escaped with a 95-93 win over the Denver Nuggets in Game 3 of a Western Conference quarterfinal series. James Posey

Yankees place Bruney, Ransom on DL among other moves >>
Boston MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees made a slew of roster moves on Saturday, which included placing pitcher Brian Bruney and third baseman Cody Ransom on the disabled list. Bruney was placed on the 15-day disabled

Stafford goes No. 1, Jets trade up to take Sanchez at No. 5 >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Lions made Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford the No. 1 overall pick in Saturday's NFL Draft after signing him to a six-year contract. Financial terms were not disclosed, but the Detroit

Astros put Quintero on DL >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Astros placed catcher Humberto Quintero on the 15-day disabled list Saturday with a strained right shoulder. Quintero suffered the injury during Friday's game in a home-plate collision with

NFL Draft Update >>
(The Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Green Bay Packers have the 9th pick, which is the 9th Round One: 1. Detroit Lions - Matthew Stafford (QB, Georgia); 2. St. Louis Rams - Jason Smith (OT, Baylor); 3. Kansas City Chiefs - Tyson Jackson (DE, L-S-U)

Jets trade up to take Sanchez at No. 5 >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Jets acquired the No. 5 pick in Saturday's NFL Draft from Cleveland in order to select USC quarterback Mark Sanchez. In exchange for getting the fifth pick, the Jets gave the Browns t

El Duque expected to throw Tuesday

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- New York Mets pitcher Orlando Hernandez, sidelined at spring training because of arthritis in his neck, is expected to resume throwing on Tuesday.

Hernandez received a cortisone shot Thursday after leaving camp and returning to New York to have his neck examined. The 41-year-old right-hander is penciled in as the team's No. 2 starter behind Tom Glavine.

El Duque's health is a major issue for the Mets, who won the NL East in 2007 and came within one victory of the World Series. Their aging and unsettled rotation is a big question mark this year.

MySportsbook.com has the Mets as -110 favorites to repeat as NL East champions odds. 

Hernandez went 11-11 with a 4.66 ERA last season, including 9-7 with a 4.09 ERA in 20 starts after the Mets acquired him from Arizona in late May. But he missed the playoffs because of a torn calf muscle.

New York already is without Pedro Martinez, out until at least midseason following rotator cuff surgery. Among those competing for starting jobs are prospects Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber and Jason Vargas, plus veterans Chan Ho Park, Jorge Sosa and Aaron Sele.

Notes: Mets manager Willie Randolph is excited about two new utility players he could have on his bench: Damion Easley and David Newhan. ''Their value is really all over the place,'' Randolph said. Easley can play anywhere in the infield and could be used as an emergency outfielder, though Randolph said he would prefer to keep the veteran in the infield. Newhan, meanwhile, can play second base, third or any outfield position for the Mets. ''I love versatility,'' Randolph said. ''I love guys that can give me options when I need them to step in.''

Additional baseball lines and World Series odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.

MySportsbook.com is an online sportsbook that aims to keep betting fun. The company sees itself as a premier provider of a top-shelf gambling entertainment experience. MySportsbook knows that this can not be accomplished if gamblers are struggling through the betting process, so the emphasis is put on simplicity and ease of use.

Established in 1997, MySportsbook was the first sportsbook to offer the Instant eCheck method, and has since continued on to be one of the most innovate and fastest growing internet sportsbooks the industry has seen. A player doesn’t have to look very far before coming across one of the many sportsbooks that have cloned MySportsbook’s written policies, web pages and advertising campaign, hoping to bottle some of MySportsbook’s magic.

Although MySportsbook’s growth is largely attributed to their talented in-house marketing team, every successful bookmaker will agree that bringing the players in is only half of the battle. In a time when most internet sportsbook were nickel-and-diming players, MySportsbook was creating ways to make bonuses automatic and absent of fine print, while offering all payouts free of charge. This sportsbook also accepts Visa & Mastercard sportsbook.

Almost everything on the online sportsbook site is set in the model of simplicity, making the CS clerk’s job easy as well. Each account action made online results in an automated email sent to the client. When calling MySportsbook, the player feels as if his call is in the united states as no accents can be heard through a state of the art telecommunications system. Few online sportsbooks can compete with My Sportsbook when it comes to offering a fun and hassle-free experience to the small to moderate sized gambler.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs.