Gian Piero Gasperini hails Atalanta’s Europa League win as a footballing fairytale after beating Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 in the final on Wednesday.
Ademola Lookman scored a hat-trick to secure Atalanta’s first-ever major European trophy, and just a second in their history after the Coppa Italia in 1963.
The Bergamo side also became the first Italian team to win the Europa League since its rebrand in 2009, with Parma in 1999 the last Serie A side to win the UEFA Cup.
Atalanta’s victory also ended a 51-game unbeaten run for Leverkusen in all competitions, topping an already dazzling Europa League.
Gasperini, who is now the oldest coach to win his debut major European final, praised his side for their historic win.
For the first time
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Week 5 of the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League will take place between Tuesday and Wednesday this week. Here are the three top matches to watch during this week’s slate.
Real Madrid vs PSG (Tuesday, 20:00 GMT)
Paris Saint-Germain have been one of the most dominant teams in the UEFA Champions League this season, winning their four matches while scoring 10 times and conceding none. The reigning Ligue 1 champions are one of three teams that have already clinched a spot in the knockout stages, and they will aim to take another step towards ending the group stage unscathed.
This will be their toughest test to date, though, as they will visit Real Madrid at Santiago Bernabeu. Even though Los Merengues have not been able to perform as expected, they are coming off back-to-back…
The 2019-20 UEFA Champions League Round of 16 draw has been completed, and now all teams know which teams will be their opponents heading into the knockout stages of the competition. As it s always the case, some teams were benefited while others will have a tough time trying to reach the quarterfinals.
Among the benefited teams, we can find Valencia, Barcelona and Juventus. Los Che will take on Atalanta arguably the weaker side on the knockout stages while Barcelona will play against a Napoli side that looks like a shell of their former self. Meanwhile, Juventus will play against Olympique Lyon. The reigning Serie A champions somehow managed to avoid facing teams such as Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund or Chelsea.
Chelsea and Madrid were two of the teams that wouldn t f…
FIFA has finally released the three finalists for the Ballon d Or Award: Real Madrid s Cristiano Ronaldo, and FC Barcelona s Xavi and Lionel Messi.
Messi, a two-time winner of the award (2009, 2010), is the favorite to win the award after a magnificent season which saw FC Barcelona win La Liga and the UEFA Champions League.
Cristiano Ronaldo previously won the award in 2008 and could very much so deserve another one this year.
In 2010-11, Ronaldo tallied a ridiculous 53 goals in 54 games. Simply stunning.
The former Manchester United talisman has kept it going this season, bagging 21 goals in just 20 appearances for Los Blancos.
But Lionel Messi has been just as impressive. The crafty Argentine striker scored 53 goals and added 24 assist…
Situational handicapping — AKA spot bets — starts holding a lot of value at this late stage in the season.
The grind of the schedule is a challenge before the whistle even blows and focus and motivation can come and go, depending on what just happened and what’s coming next. These factors can give you an added advantage when shopping the Week 14 odds, as these aren’t always baked into the numbers.
I run down the NFL Week 14 slate and call out some of my top spots — look-ahead, letdown, and schedule — for you to keep in mind this week.
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Monday Night Football betting gives us a monster matchup in Week 14 when the Los Angeles Rams head to the desert to battle the Arizona Cardinals.
The spread is a tight one, so if you can’t get off the fence with a wager on the side, perhaps you should look to the lengthy list of alternative odds and Monday Night Football prop bets for Rams at Cardinals. Or maybe you just want to sprinkle in more MNF bets among your existing action.
Whatever your flavor, here are our free NFL props picks and predictions for Los Angeles at Arizona on December 13.
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Somehow, we’re already into Week 8 of the season and it’s a loaded slate, starting with another international game in London on Sunday morning and closing with a pair of intriguing primetime matchups.
Ahead of the weekend, we’re canvassing the NFL odds board and bringing you our favorite NFL player props, shining a light on one of the league’s best dual-threat quarterbacks getting it done on the ground, and a rising star muted by both his own team and this week’s foe.
Get set for another week around the league with our NFL prop picks for Week 8.
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The Week 17 odds feature a marquee NFL matchup tonight between the Detroit Lions and the Dallas Cowboys.
With just two weeks remaining, first place in the NFC is a battle of four teams, with the 11-4 Lions and 10-5 Cowboys among those jockeying for position. And with both clubs heavily benefitting from home-field advantage this season, finishing as high as possible in the standings is crucial.
NFL odds opened with the Cowboys as 6-point home favorites and the Over/Under at a sky-high 53.5 for this clash. Here are my best free NFL picks for the Lions vs. Cowboys on Saturday, December 30.
Be sure to also check out our Saturday Night Football props and Dak Prescott odds spotlight!
Lions vs Cowboys odds
In a battle of bachelorette party hot spots, the Tennessee Titans come to South Beach to dance with the Miami Dolphins in the latest Week 14 odds. Given the near two-touchdown spread, much like those bachelorette bashes, things could get messy in the MNF odds.
Miami is moving up the power rankings, having won three straight while claiming the top spot in the AFC heading into Week 14. The Dolphins are playing just their second home game in the past 42 days, owning a 4-1 ATS mark as hosts in the NFL odds this season.
Tennessee, on the other hand, is one of the worst road bets in the league, bringing a 1-5 ATS mark as a visitor to Hard Rock Stadium. Florida hasn’t been kind to the Titans, with the team losing by a combined score of 54-20 in stops at Jackson…
In a battle of bachelorette party hot spots, the Tennessee Titans come to South Beach to dance with the Miami Dolphins in the latest Week 14 odds. Given the near two-touchdown spread, much like those bachelorette bashes, things could get messy in the MNF odds.
Miami is moving up the power rankings, having won three straight while claiming the top spot in the AFC heading into Week 14. The Dolphins are playing just their second home game in the past 42 days, owning a 4-1 ATS mark as hosts in the NFL odds this season.
Tennessee, on the other hand, is one of the worst road bets in the league, bringing a 1-5 ATS mark as a visitor to Hard Rock Stadium. Florida hasn’t been kind to the Titans, with the team losing by a combined score of 54-20 in stops at Jackson…
This week’s NFL preseason action opens on Thursday night with the Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots.
With neither team deploying their A offenses, I don’t expect either to be firing on all cylinders in my Eagles vs. Patriots predictions and NFL picks for Thursday, August 15.
Eagles vs Patriots prediction
My best betUnder 35.5 (-105 at FanDuel)
My analysis
We’re taking the Under on the total of 35.5 despite that number having risen two points since opening. We’re doing this because of the potential for poor quarterback play.
The Philadelphia Eagles will likely see a lot of Tanner McKee and Will Grier, neither of whom is likely to cause the New England Patriots huge issues.
Given that Jalen Hurt…