Four-star Bolton leave Boro on brink

Bolton pushed Middlesbrough closer to the brink of relegation with a convincing 4-1 win at the Reebok Stadium on Saturday.

Boro briefly looked as if they might take something from the match after Gary O’Neil cancelled out Kevin Davies’s early strike for the Trotters.

But Gary Cahill fired home a match-turning strike just before half-time and Bolton went on to win at a canter with Matt Taylor and Ricardo Gardner finding the net after the break.

It was Boro’s ninth straight away defeat and there was little on show from Gareth Southgate’s side to suggest they are capable of making up the five points that separates them from Sunderland, the side currently occupying the last survival spot.

Bolton’s opener came after Emanuel Pogatetz failed to cut out a Gardner cross, allowing Davies the chance to fire home his 12th league goal of the season.

Fabrice Muamba should have made it two for the home side but scuffed his close-range shot from Cahill’s cross.

Alfonso Alves saw a 25-yard free-kick come back off the woodwork before O’Neil latched on to a pass from Tuncay Sanli to claim the equaliser for Boro.

If they had been able to get to the break on level terms, Boro might have had a chance but they made a mess of defending a free-kick from Taylor and, after Johan Elmander had brought the ball down, Cahill fired in a close-range strike.

Boro had their chances to get back into the match but the contest was ended by Taylor, who found the net with an inswinging free-kick from wide on the right with ten minutes left.

Gardner rounded things off by bringing down Taylor’s cross from the left and firing in the fourth goal, five minutes from time.