Bayern holds off Lyon to claim top spot in group

Soccer Betting Lines

12/10/2008 - Lyon, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Miroslav Klose's first-half double helped Bayern Munich down Lyon, 3-2 at the Stade Gerland on Wednesday in Champions League Group F play.

Both sides entered the match having already secured passage into the knockout round, leaving the group winner as the only issue left to be decided.

The German side came out firing and went ahead 3-0 after 37 minutes. Klose scored 11 minutes into the match and Franck Ribery added a second goal in the 34th minute, with Klose adding to his tally three minutes later.

However, the home side responded with a goal from Sidney Govou shortly after the restart and another from Karim Benzema with 22 minutes to play, although they failed to find a third which allows Bayern to claim the group's top spot.

Lyon came out strong in the opening 10 minutes but the French champions found themselves a goal down in the 11th minute when a loose ball fell into the path of Klose 15 yards from goal and he lashed a shot past goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

The lead was doubled when Luca Toni played a nice ball down the left wing for Ribery, who got into the box and fired inside the far post before a Klose header from close range three minutes later made it 3-0 at the break.

Ederson forced a diving stop from Bayern's Michael Rensing, but Govou was on hand to clean up the rebound, while Benzema continued his good form in the Champions League by tallying his fifth goal of the competition in the 68th minute.

The hosts final chance came with 10 minutes to play when Fred's header towards the far post was knocked to safety by Rensing, preserving the win.

Fiorentina did enough to claim the UEFA Cup spot from the group as Alberto Gilardino's goal in the 66th minute gave the Italian side a 1-0 win over Steaua Bucurest.

FC Porto pulled off a surprising 2-0 win over Arsenal to grab the top spot from Group G, while Dynamo Kyiv got a 1-0 win over Fenerbahce on Roman Eremenko's first-half goal. Porto trailed Arsenal by two points entering the day, but the Portuguese side was able to pass the Gunners as Bruno Alves scored seven minutes before halftime and Lisandro Lopez added a second goal shortly after the break, making Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger's 700th game in charge of the club a forgettable one.

Juande Ramos made a good impression in his first game in charge of Real Madrid as he led the team to a 3-0 win over UEFA Cup-bound Zenit St Petersburg. Raul scored a goal in each half with Arjen Robben scoring between the two. Juventus needed only a draw to clinch first place in the group, and Claudio Ranieri's men did just that, playing to a 0-0 deadlock with last-place BATE Borisov.

Manchester United will go through to the next round as Group E winners despite being held to a 2-2 draw at Old Trafford by AaB because second-place Villarreal suffered a 2-0 defeat at Celtic. Shaun Maloney and Aiden McGeady both scored first-half goals for the Hoops, who failed to advance past the group stage for the first time in three years. The Danish side was already assured of a spot in the UEFA Cup, but they have to be very pleased to come away from United with a point. Carlos Tevez scored three minutes into the game before AaB went in front before halftime with goals from Michael Jakobsen and Jeppe Curt, only for Wayne Rooney to level things in the 52nd minute.

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Football Betting: Defensive Rookie of the Year Awards

Oddsmakers have released the odds for the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and Seattle Seahawks linebacker Aaron Curry has been made the opening favorite.

Bet on NFL Football

Seattle took Curry with the fourth overall pick in April's NFL draft and plan on inserting him into its starting lineup right away. The Hawks traded linebacker Julian Peterson in the offseason, so Curry is expected to have a significant role in Seattle's defense next year and that's one of the primary reasons he is the favorite to win the NFL ROY Award.

Oddsmakers from online sportsbook MySportsbook.com have made Curry a 5/1 favorite to win this year's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Given that he was the best defensive prospect in this year's draft and how he'll have plenty of opportunities to make plays in '09, Curry offers a ton of value at 5/1.

Another thing working for Curry is the position he plays. A linebacker has won the defensive ROY award six straight times and eight of the last nine years. Jerod Mayo, Patrick Willis, DeMeco Ryans, Shawne Merriman, Jonathan Vilma, Terrell Suggs, Kendrell Bell and Brian Urlacher were the most recent linebackers to take home the award.

Following Curry at 5/1 are Tyson Jackson (Chiefs) at 7/1, James Laurinaitas (Rams) at 8/1, Brian Orakpo (Redskins) at 10/1, Rey Maualuga (Bengals) at 10/1 and Jerry Peria (Falcons) at 10/1.

All the players mentioned above are expected to start for their respective teams, but Jackson and Peria are going to have a tough time being recognized on a national level given they're both defensive linemen. D-linemen rarely put up the numbers that it takes to win an individual award like the ROY.

A couple of players with some value are Clay Matthews (Packers) at 12/1 and Larry English (Chargers) at 15/1. Matthews is expected to start at outside linebacker in Green Bay's new 3-4 defense and could rack up a ton of tackles. English, who was an impressive player at Northern Illinois, is expected to be a situational pass rusher for the Chargers and could rack up a ton of sacks.

For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, see below. And for complete odds for the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, click the link provided.

2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award

Robert Ayers (DEN) 12/1

Ron Brace (NE) 25/1

Everette Brown (CAR) 16/1

Darius Butler (NE) 40/1

Patrick Chung (NE) 30/1

Aaron Curry (SEA) 5/1

Brian Cushing (HOU) 12/1

Vontae Davis (MIA) 30/1

Louis Delmas (DET) 30/1

Larry English (SD) 15/1

Evander Hood (PIT) 25/1

Tyson Jackson (KC) 7/1

Malcolm Jenkins (NO) 25/1

Paul Kruger (BAL) 50/1

James Laurinaitas (STL) 8/1

Sen'Derrick Marks (TEN) 20/1

Clay Matthews (GB) 12/1

Aaron Maybin (BUF) 15/1

Rey Maualuga (CIN) 10/1

Roy Miller (TB) 20/1

Michael Mitchell (OAK) 45/1

Fili Moala (IND) 30/1

Brian Orakpo (WAS) 10/1

Jerry Peria (ATL) 10/1

B J Raji (GB) 7/1

Clint Sintim (NYG) 35/1

Alphonso Smith (DEN) 40/1

David Verkune (CLE) 20/1

Jason Williams (DAL) 30/1

Field (Any Other Player) 6/1

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To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.