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Case of the Mondays: Argentina, Spain Bounced Out of World Cup


by - 7/3/2018

Lionel Messi Argentina Soccer

The first two days of knockout-round action at the World Cup witnessed several major casualties, with Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Spain all crashing out of the tournament. Argentina fell to France, Portugal came up short against Uruguay, and the Spaniards were stunned by host Russia. Back on the home front, meanwhile, shockwaves were felt when Cleveland lost LeBron James in free agency to the Lakers.

Odds provided by Bovada Sportsbook unless otherwise indicated.

Lionel Messi . Messi retired following the 2014 World Cup (Argentina lost to Germany in the final). It didn't last long. At 31 years old, Messi will probably retire again from competition with the national team-and this time it might be permanent. If it is, it ends with Messi having scored just one goal in Russia (during group-stage action against Nigeria). He has still never found the back of the net in a World Cup knockout-round match. The Argentines managed to score three times this past Saturday, but Kylian Mbappe led France to a 4-3 victory. France and Brazil are +350 co-favorites to win it all.

Spain . South Korea eliminating Germany may be the biggest upset of the World Cup, but this one obviously made even bigger headlines in Russia because it involved the host nation. The Russians erased a one-goal deficit by converting a penalty kick in the 41st minute and they eventually stunned 2010 World Cup champion Spain 4-3 in a shootout to break a 1-1 tie. Russia is a +275 underdog to beat Croatia prior to penalty kicks during quarterfinal action this coming Saturday.

Cleveland Cavaliers . The decision is in: LeBron is going to the Lakers. It did not take long for the beginning of NBA free agency to launch itself into a frenzy, as LeBron needed less than 24 hours following the 12:00 a.m. Sunday start to agree with L.A. on a four-year max contract. This second departure should not hurt the city of Cleveland quite as much because not only was it expected, but the Cavaliers at least have one championship under their belts. But it will likely hurt the roster-and owner Dan Gilbert-just as much, because there is very little value left on the Cavs. LeBron is +350 to win NBA MVP in 2018-19 (MyBookie.ag).

Detroit Tigers . The Tigers won an actual baseball game on Sunday, and they did so in emphatic fashion (9-1 over the Blue Jays). That victory may have come too late for Detroit, which had lost a ridiculous 11 games in a row. The team has plummeted a whopping 9.5 games out of first place in the American League Central and it is an insurmountable 17 games out of the AL's second wild-card spot. Detroit (Fiers) is a +137 underdog at Toronto (Borucki) on Monday.

Robert Turbin . The Colts' running back has been suspended four regular-season games for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing drug policy. "It absolutely kills me that I allowed this to happen," Turbin posted on Twitter. "It has always been a priority in my life to display a high level of leadership both on and off the field…. Unfortunately, I have made a mistake. A mistake that will not only have personal consequences, but will affect the Colts organization, an organization that I am extremely appreciative to be a part of. For that, I am truly sorry." The 28-year-old played only six games last year due to an elbow problem but he has been working with the first team this offseason because Indianapolis did not re-sign Frank Gore and Marlon Mack is dealing with a shoulder injury. The Colts are +500 to win the AFC South.

Andy Murray . Murray is out of Wimbledon, he announced on Sunday. The former world No. 1 was sidelined for almost a full year by a hip injury before returning last month for smaller grass-court tournaments in London and Eastbourne. But he ultimately decided that playing best-of-five matches at a Grand Slam was too risky for his health. "It is with a heavy heart that I'm announcing that I'll be withdrawing from Wimbledon this year," Murray wrote on his social media channels. "I've made significant progress in practice and matches over the last ten days, but after lengthy discussions with my team, we've decided that playing best of five set matches might be a bit too soon in the recovery process. We did everything we could to try to be ready in time." Roger Federer is +130 favorite to win the title; Novak Djokovic is a +450 second choice (MyBookie.ag).

Tiger Woods . Tiger may have been in the business of moral victories earlier in his 2018 comeback, but there is no doubt that it is now time to start winning. The 42-year-old once again made multiple flirtations with the lead only to fall back on every occasion, this time at last week's Quicken Loans National. Tiger made four straight birdies on Saturday before bogeying three of his last 11 holes. During final-round action on Sunday he cut a six-shot deficit to four by playing the first eight holes in 3-under only to make bogeys on 11 and 13. "The last two days playing 13 (and) 14 the way I did…I bogeyed 13 twice and then didn't birdie 14 either day and I was right there next to the green," Tiger reflected. "Those are things I can't afford to do and expect to win a golf tournament." As it turns out, he would not have triumphed on Sunday no matter what he did because Francesco Molinari carded a closing 62 and won by eight strokes at 21-under. Tiger was T4 at 11-under. The 14-time major champion is +2000 to win the British Open later this month; Dustin Johnson is a +1000 favorite.

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