Fulham signs Russian striker Pogrebnyak

Soccer Betting Lines

01/31/2012 - London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fulham signed Russian international Pavel Pogrebnyak from German side Stuttgart on Tuesday on a six-month contract.

Pogrebnyak, 28, has played for Stuttgart since 2009, when he left Russian side Zenit. Pogrebnyak scored 22 goals in 58 appearances for Zenit from 2007-09 and had 15 goals in 68 appearances for Stuttgart since 2009.

Capped 30 times for Russia, Pogrebnyak started his career with Spartak Moscow, which loaned him three times, and also spent a season with Tom Tomsk in Russia before making his move to Zenit, and then Stuttgart.

Candustand Soccer Betting News

<< Alouettes WR Watkins announces retirement
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Montreal Alouettes wide receiver Kerry Watkins announced his retirement on Tuesday. During his eight-year career, Watkins caught 515 passes for 7,431 yards and 48 touchdowns. "We congratulate Kerr

<< United go level atop EPL with Stoke defeat, City loss
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United climbed back into a tie with Manchester City for the English Premier League lead on Tuesday after defeating Stoke City, 2-0, at Old Trafford. A pair of penalties helped the Red

<< United signs defender Veseli from City
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United acquired 19-year-old defender Frederic Veseli from rival Manchester City on Tuesday. Veseli, a center back, plays for Switzerland's Under-20 side and captained the Swiss to the U-17 W

<< Barca signs forward Cuenca to extension
Barcelona, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Barcelona signed forward Isaac Cuenca to a contract extension Tuesday that will keep the 20-year-old with the club until the summer of 2015. Cuenca has made 12 appearances for Barcelona this season and sc

<< Everton acquires Jelavic from Rangers
Liverpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Everton acquired Croatian striker Nikica Jelavic from Scottish side Rangers on Tuesday, and signed him to a 4 1/2-year deal. Jelavic, 26, scored 36 goals in just 55 games for Rangers. Capped 17 times fo

Missouri's Tiguinho named MISL Player of Week >>
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Missouri Comets forward Tiguinho was named the Major Indoor Soccer League's Player of the Week on Tuesday for Week 13. Tiguinho had two goals and five assists as Missouri rolled to a 33-12 win over the Syracus

Indians acquire Canzler from Rays >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians acquired INF/OF Russ Canzler from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for cash considerations Tuesday. The 25-year-old Canzler was named the MVP of the International League last seas

City acquires Pizarro on loan from Roma >>
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester City acquired Chilean David Pizarro on loan for the rest of the season Tuesday from Italian side Roma. Pizarro, 32, played under City manager Roberto Mancini at Inter Milan, but has played j

Los Angeles Angeles >>
Suspended minor league pitcher Daniel Reynolds 50 games for a second violation of MLB drug policy.

Tottenham acquires Saha from Everton >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tottenham signed striker Louis Saha from Everton on Tuesday. Saha, 33, had two goals in his first seven games for Everton this season, but did not score in his last 13 games. The Frenchman started his c

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.

NFL Betting Lines

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

$12,000,000.00 MARCH MADNESS BRACKET CONTEST

2009 MARCH MADNESS BRACKET CONTEST

Offering $12 Million Dollars to whoever fills in the perfect March Madness Bracket. For the fifth year in a row MySportsbook.com is giving March Madness bettors a chance to never have to work another day in their lives. MySportsbook.com has been in business for 12 years and to celebrate this years March Madness they are offering $1 Million Dollars for every year they have been taking college basketball wagers along with every other sports wagering type imaginable.

The MySportsbook.com March Madness contest is simple just Sign-up for the March Madness bracket contest and come back after Selection Sunday to submit your March Madness picks. Then place $20.00 in wagers during each round of the March Madness tournament. Even if your bracket is not perfect you could potentially still win $10,000.00.

There is not an office pool on the planet that can offer this March Madness Grand Prize. Get together with your office, work as a team or keep the $12 Million and do it yourself and win the $12 Million. Also feel free to print out the Printable March Madness Brackets .

Get free 2009 March Madness Betting from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online March Madness betting VISA Mastercard