Di Vaio sets sail for the Impact

Former Italy striker Marco Di Vaio will join MLS’ newest team Montreal Impact this month, linking up with the Canadians as their designated player. The 35-year old finished his Serie A carer at Bologna last season, ending a career in Italy that saw the forward rack up 142 goals in 342 appearances.

The experienced striker will now head to the MLS to try and score the goals that help the Impact build on their impressive start to their rookie season. The former Juventus, Parma, Genoa and Lazio star’s arrival at Montreal will boost their options, linking up with fellow Italian Bernardo Corradi in an all-Italian strike-force and punters who bet on soccer games are predicting a goal-filled future for the Impact.

"I have accepted with great enthusiasm the challenge of joining an enticing championship like MLS. I am extremely eager to make the entire club proud from the president to its supporters," the former Italian international said.

"It was not an easy choice to leave Bologna but I hope to be able to serve a similar role in Montreal, as I am prepared to give everything I have, including my experience and leadership for my coaches, my teammates and the organisation.”

After a difficult start to the season, the Impact have begun looking more like a genuine MLS side, suffering their first loss in five matches against the in-form New York Red Bulls, defying pre season soccer betting tips that they would struggle.

Di Vaio’s arrival will certainly give a boost to the entire squad, possibly giving them the sort of belief that they can start climbing up the Western Conference table. The Italian, meanwhile, will need to prove to the fans that he hasn’t just joined the MLS as a final chance for a payday.

MLB: The Hall of Fame dream

One of the ultimate goals for any MLB player - aside from winning the World Series - is to gain entry to the Hall Of Fame and take their place in Cooperstown.

There's a certain prestige that comes along with entering the Hall of Fame, but when you're inducted on the first ballot, it solidifies your status in the league's history even further.

But which of the current players around the leagues have what it takes to make the Hall Of Fame on the first ballot and give their status more cache than ever?

One of the best ever closers in the history of baseball would be our first pick, and we’re sure it’s a view shared by many MLB betting tips.

Baron Davis’ 2012 season was ended by a torn MCL, and although he claims he’ll be back at some point he has enough back class to justify Hall Of Fame entry on the first attempt - a 2.21 career ERA and astonishing 0.70 career postseason ERA will certainly help punch his ticket to Cooperstown as soon as he decides to hang up the bat.

Moving from pitchers to batters, how about the inclusion of Albert Pujols as a potential first-timer in the Hall Of Fame?

Pujols has either won or finished second in the NL MVP voting in seven of the last nine seasons. Even with his recent struggles in LA, his .326 career average with 448 home runs and nearly 1,500 RBI is a testament to his track record for success.

And it's hard to believe that anyone would doubt that he'll return to form eventually.

For our final pick we’ll go with Derek Jeter, who has to have been one of the most consistent players in the game and to this day features prominently in most MLB previews.

He has multiple World Series rings and is among the best shortstops that we have ever seen play the game. And, since 1996, he has only once appeared in less than 148 games in a season (119 games played in 2003).

Playing in that many games in a season would hurt most players’ numbers but that appears not to have happened with Jeter. His .314 career average and 3,147 hits only add to the aura that he brings to the game. He would be a fine first ballot pick.

Williams looking dangerous ahead of Roland Garros

Serena Williams has struggled with injuries, in recent years, and recently had to pull out of the Italian Open, but the big-hitting American insists that she will be 100 per cent fit for the French Open, a development that could be a blow to her rivals.

The American has endured a torrid recent few years, due to a succession of injuries, but there is no doubting her talent, with 13 Grand Slam singles titles to her name.

Williams has looked back to her ominous best, in recent months, but she had to withdraw ahead of her semi-final with Li Na at the Italian Open as a precautionary measure, due to a back injury.

Going into the French Open, she has a clay court winning streak of 17 matches. She won clay court titles in Charleston and Madrid, in the past month. Williams is currently the favourite to win the Roland Garros, as fans who enjoy betting with www.betvictor.com will no doubt be aware. 

She will be a dangerous opponent for all her rivals in the French Open, as Williams looks to add to her solitary win in the Grand Slam - which came all the way back in 2002 – but she insists she will be raring to go come Roland Garros.

“On Friday morning, I felt a bit of pain in my lower back and, if it's not 100 per cent, its better not to play and make it worse", Williams said.

"But I am in good form, I have a few days to get better and I am confident I will be 100 per cent fit for the French Open."

Elsewhere, Maria Sharapova could fancy her chances of winning the 2012 French Open, after her success in Italy.

She beat defending French Open champion, Na, in the final, and she seems to be coming into the competition in real form. However, she does not boast the best record at the Roland Garros, with only two semi-finals in nine attempts.

Have a bet with Bet Victor for the best odds on the upcoming French Open, as well as on Wimbledon and the Olympics.

NHL: Prime Time Performers

The Stanley Cup is reaching its climax and the best performers are already playing dominant roles in getting their sides to the pinnacle of the NHL. Dustin Brown of the Los Angeles Kings is leading his team through a dominant run to the finals.

Meanwhile, netminders  Jonathan Quick and Henrik Lundqvist, two of the NHL picks from this season, seem impossible to beat, and those performances can only make picking the Conn Smythe Trophy winner all the more difficult.

Being triumphant in a Stanley Cup takes a mammoth effort from all concerned but there is usually one player who comes along to drive the team to the final goal and plays at a higher level than anyone else. We could have written a fairly long list of players who are capable of this but time and space limit us to picking three.

So where to start; well a good place would be with the only man to have won consecutive Conn Smythe Trophies – Mario Lemieux, who was a focal point of the Pittsburgh Penguins franchise which won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 1991 and 1992.

Lemieux led the NHL in playoff points with 44 points in 23 games in 1991 then 34 points in 15 games in 1992. Only Wayne Gretzky has scored more than Lemieux’s 44.

Talking of Gretzky that’s where we go next and we could hardly leave him out of a list such as this as “The Great One” holds nearly every major regular season honour offensively and is the NHL’s all-time leader in career playoff goals, assists and points.

Not a single player has ever, or probably will ever, produce as much offense as Gretzky did at any time in his career, including the playoffs, where he is the only player in history to score more than 40 points in a playoff run – his 47 in 1985 set a record that may never be beaten.

But while this may be heresy to some the fact remains that Gretsky did not win a Stanley Cup without Mark Messier in the team while Messier did just that without Gretsky

Those that bet on hockey will tell you that Messier won six Stanley Cups in his career, including two without the help of hockey’s greatest offensive player of all time.

If you needed scoring, you went to Gretzky. If you needed to win the Stanley Cup, you went to Messier, whose remarkable will to win and leadership qualities mark him down as one of if not the most influential post-season performer of all-time.

Should We all Just Give Downing a Break?

He finished the season with only one assist in English football, and the laughable form of Stewart Downing (and, to be fair to him, several other of Liverpool's new signings) encouraged Liverpool's ruthless owners to show King Kenny Dalglish the door at Anfield.

However, Roy Hodgson still, for reasons perhaps best known to himself, opted to pick him in the England squad for the upcoming Euros. The Three Lions are not expected to win, regardless of Downing’s inclusion; the side are fifth-favourites for the title in the Euro 2012 tips.

These statements seem a little uncomfortable sitting side by side, and, with derision thrown in the direction of the new England manager ever since he decided not to leave Downing back in England, might it be the case that we are actually missing something?

Well, let us look at the plain, hard facts. Downing may not have been a hit at Liverpool, this season, but who did perform well consistently for the Reds this year?

Underperforming seemed to be the name of the game for much of the season for the whole starting line-up, and Downing actually created more changes for Liverpool than any other wide player.

The fact that the likes of Andy Carroll, the sort of player to feed off Downing's crosses into the box, were unable to convert in front of goal, perhaps should not reflect so badly on the winger.

What's more, who could Hodgson have picked in his place? Adam Johnson has been touted by many as being deserving ahead of Downing, but Johnson hardly featured for the title-winning Manchester City.

With a few more years of international experience under his belt, Hodgson perhaps was not as big an idiot as some have suggested, leaving the youngster at home in favour of a man who hasn't done at all badly in an England shirt, in recent years.

Downing's confidence looks shattered, there is no doubt about that, but in a new environment away from the unique pressures that seem to swirl around Anfield, he could yet prove his doubters wrong, by helping to fire England to the latter stages of the tournament.

If you do not fancy betting on one of the favourites, this summer, visit the Poland Euro 2012 odds page for more information on one-half of this year’s hosts.

McEnroe – Don't Rule out Federer

Patrick McEnroe says he feels Roger Federer has a good chance of adding to his tally of Wimbledon titles, but may need to move himself up the rankings to aid his hopes.

The Swiss ace has not won a Grand Slam title since his success at the 2010 Australian Open, but hopes are high that he can add another major, this year.

Federer, who has 16 Slams to his name, ended 2011 with victory in the ATP Tour Championship at the O2 Arena, and has already won four ATP Tour titles, to date, this year.

By his incredibly high standards though, his last two appearances at SW19 have been disappointing, given that he failed to get past the quarterfinals in 2010 and 2011.

The six-time Wimbledon winner suffered a heart-breaking five-set defeat to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, last year, but his recent form gives the 30-year-old renewed hope.

Former US Davis Cup captain, McEnroe, feels a rise in his ranking will give Federer more hope of lifting another major title.

McEnroe told ESPN: "I’m actually a little more optimistic now than I’ve been in, say, the last year and a half. I think he’s playing better.

"If he can be a second seed, going into a Grand Slam, as opposed to being a third seed, that would make - to me - his chances quite a bit better, because then he wouldn’t have to necessarily go through both guys [Djokovic and Nadal]."

The former top-30 player also believes that, despite having won all four of the majors, grass is still Federer's best surface.

McEnroe added: “Obviously, Wimbledon you would think is his best chance, even though he’s been picked off the last two years there. That’s still the surface, where there are far fewer guys that can pick him off.”

Federer is the third favourite to take the gold in Paris in the French Open tennis betting. Find out more about championship tennis, and pick up some gambling tips ahead of a busy summer of tennis on http://betting.betfair.com/tennis/french-open-betting/.

Cipriani eyes England return

While the nation’s tabloids will be licking their lips at the return to England of Danny Cipriani, the talented fly-half has made it clear his time in Australia has allowed him to mature as both a person and a player. The 24-year old has recently arrived back home after an 18-month stint in Australia with the Melbourne Rebels, returning to the Premiership after signing a three-year contract with Sale Sharks.

The former Wasps star’s stay Down Under was hardly an incident-free spell, with a number of off-field issues once again often taking the focus away from his considerable talents on the pitch.

That said, the fly-half did prove his ability as a player, impressing many with his performances for a Melbourne side looking to establish themselves in Super Rugby, catching the eye of Sale who moved quickly to hand Cipriani the chance to return to England.

The next eye Cipriani will be hoping to catch will be that of new England head coach Stuart Lancaster. The fly-half has made it clear he is leaving Australia and signing for Sale with a recall to the national side as one of his biggest targets. Cipriani knows that it will be his performances for the Sharks that will be the key to his return to the England setup, as well as keeping himself out of the headlines for off-field incidents.

"I just want to make the news for what I do on the rugby field. When it comes down to it, I've got quite a lot to prove to myself as I know where I can be and what I can do, and I want to achieve that with Sale.”

"I think I will be coming back as a better player and a better person for the experience of playing with Melbourne,” claimed Cipriani.

"Playing for England again is a huge goal of mine. but my performance and focus has to start at my club and right now all my energies are on pre-season with Sale."

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