Chelsea expects to grab one of three remaining spots

Soccer Betting Lines

12/08/2008 - London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With 13 of the 16 spots in the knockout round already decided, there is room for just three more teams in the next round of Europe's premier club competition.

European heavyweights Barcelona, Manchester United, Arsenal, Juventus, Liverpool and Real Madrid have already secured passage, but last season's finalists, Chelsea, are not safe just yet.

The Blues are part of a Group A picture that has yet to come into focus. The group is the only one of eight that has yet to place even one team in the last 16.

Roma sits on top of the group with nine points and will clinch the top spot with a win over Bordeaux at home. However, if Bordeaux is able to pull off the upset, it would force Chelsea to earn three points at home against CFR Cluj, the only team that cannot advance.

Despite the fact that the Blues have yet to secure a spot in the next round, manager Luiz Felipe Scolari is approaching the game like any other.

"It is one more game. It's important for our qualification for the next phase, but it is the same as other games," Scolari told the club's official website. "Three points and we need to win because if we win the game we are in the second round."

Midfielder Frank Lampard received a red card in Chelsea's last game against Bordeaux, and he will not play, while winger Florent Malouda is also out. Joe Cole is expected to be back in the lineup, however, offsetting Malouda's absence.

The only other spot up for grabs is from Group B, where Inter Milan is safe and waiting to be joined by either Panathinaikos or Anorthosis. Inter will visit Werder Bremen, which still has a chance at dropping to the UEFA Cup, while Panathinaikos meets Anorthosis at Athens Olympic Stadium and needs only a draw because they lead the Cypriot side by one point.

Group C has been totally decided with Barcelona through as group winners, while they will be joined by Sporting in the next round. Shakhtar Donetsk is headed for the UEFA Cup and visits Barca on Tuesday, while last-place Basel entertains Sporting.

Atletico Madrid and Liverpool are level on 11 points at the top of Group D, and while both are already through, they still must decide a group winner. Madrid holds a slight edge in goal difference and travels to Marseille, while Liverpool visits PSV.

Group E must still determine a winner as well, with Manchester United and Villarreal sitting even on nine points. United will go through as the top team if they can beat AaB at Old Trafford, while Celtic, which has been eliminated from European competition, hosts Villarreal.

Bayern Munich and Lyon will determine the top team in Group F when they meet at the Stade de Gerland, while the UEFA Cup spot will go to Fiorentina as long as they don't lose at Steaua Bucharest.

Arsenal visits FC Porto with a two-point lead over the Portuguese side, although both teams are already through. The UEFA Cup berth will be decided at Lobanovsky Dynamo Stadium in Ukraine as Dynamo Kyiv needs only a draw against last-place Fenerbahce.

Juventus is on top of Group H by two points and will clinch the group with a home victory against BATE Borisov. Real Madrid is also through but will clinch the top spot only with a win over Zenit St Petersburg and a loss by Juve. Zenit, the defending UEFA Cup champions, will have a chance to defend that title no matter what happens in Spain.

Jackpor Soccer Betting News

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Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

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