Arsenal held by Bolton at the Reebok

Soccer Betting Lines

02/01/2012 - Bolton, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arsenal extended its winless run after it was held to a 0-0 draw at Bolton in Premier League play Wednesday.

The Gunners had lost three straight league games heading into their clash against the Trotters, but a staunch Bolton defense ensured that Arsenal would not claim its first win since the turn of the new year.

Despite the deficiency in goals, neither team was devoid of scoring opportunities at the Reebok.

David N'Gog almost shocked Arsene Wenger's men in the first half after latching on to a bouncing ball in the box. N'Gog slipped past Laurent Koscielny and was one-on-one with Wojciech Szczesny, but the French winger failed to control the ball cleanly as he pushed his effort just wide of the post.

Robin van Persie came within inches of putting Arsenal in front 10 minutes from time. The Dutchman sailed a late shot toward goal over the head of goalkeeper Adam Bogdan, but it rattled the crossbar and was cleared to safety by the Bolton defense.

The Trotters had a penalty shout down the stretch when Mark Davies found himself through on goal. The midfielder was tugged by Per Mertesacker and tripped up by Szczesny, but no call was given.

The match finished scoreless, dooming Arsenal to a four-game winless run.

The Gunners slip to seventh place in the Premier League after Newcastle claimed a 2-0 win over Blackburn on Wednesday. The Magpies move into fifth place on 39 points, one point ahead of Liverpool in sixth place and two ahead of Arsenal in seventh.

Bolton remains one spot above the relegation zone, but moves two points clear of 18th place following Blackburn's loss to Newcastle. The Trotters sit fourth from bottom on 20 points.

Newcastle 2, Blackburn 0

Blackburn, England - Newcastle climbed into fifth place in the Premier League after a 2-0 defeat of Blackburn at Ewood Park on Wednesday.

Scott Dann conceded an own goal in the 12th minute to put the Magpies in front. Blackburn was left to rue a missed penalty kick from David Dunn in the 44th minute as Gabriel Obertan added a second goal for Newcastle at the death to secure all three points.

The Magpies jump ahead of Arsenal and Liverpool in the EPL table and into fifth place on 39 points. Blackburn, meanwhile, remains in the relegation zone with just 18 points.

Fulham 1, West Bromwich 1

London, England - Clint Dempsey continued his good form Wednesday, but it was not enough to overturn the Baggies as Fulham and West Bromwich played to a 1-1 draw at Craven Cottage.

The American international bagged his 10th goal of the Premier League season in the 69th minute, but Somen Tchoyi scored eight minutes from time with his first goal of the season to see West Brom and Fulham split the points.

The draw sees the two clubs remain just one point apart, as the Cottagers improve to 27 points compared to 26 points from the Baggies.

Sunderland 3, Norwich City 0

Sunderland, England - Sunderland cruised to a comfortable 3-0 win over Norwich City at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday to continue its good form under Martin O'Neill.

Fraizer Campbell, Stephane Sessegnon, and an own goal from Daniel Ayala saw the Black Cats claim their sixth win from their eight matches under O'Neill.

Sunderland moved into eighth place on 30 points, one point better than Norwich City, which is tied with Everton for the 10th position in England's top flight.

Aston Villa 2, QPR 2

Birmingham, England - QPR threw away a two-goal advantage on Wednesday as Aston Villa stormed back to claim a point in a 2-2 draw at Villa Park.

New QPR signing Djibril Cisse opened the scoring in the 12th minute, a lead that was doubled in the 29th minute following an own goal from Stephen Warnock. But the Villans battled back thanks to goals from Darren Bent and Charles N'Zogbia in the 45th and 79th minutes, respectively.

QPR moves three points clear of the relegation zone on 21 points, while Villa continues its search for a place in the top half of the table as it sits in 12th place on 28 points.

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FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million

Football Betting

In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.

And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.

Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.

So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.

Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)

The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.

As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.

The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.

In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.

Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.

And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.

So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.

There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.

So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.

And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.

There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)

Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.

Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.

Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.

So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.

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