Prediction: Bolton vs Chelsea

23rd January 2011

Bolton aim to stop their disappointing run of results and prove everyone they can match the best teams in the league by beating Chelsea, although that is easier said than done. The Blues are slowly returning to form and they hope to do a double over Bolton after beating the Trotters at Stamford Bridge.

Bolton started the season in remarkable fashion as Owen Coyle’s attacking style produced instant results with the Trotters quickly moving to the top part of the table. Bolton played pretty well until the hectic schedule started taking its toll on their pretty small squad and the team are still struggling to arrest the latest poor run of results. With Lee Chung Yong with South Korea on Asian Cup and few important players on the sidelines, the Trotters had major problems over the last few weeks, picking up just one point from their last four league games, so this is definitely not the right time to be facing revived Chelsea side. Bolton have gone 13 years without beating Chelsea at Reebok Stadium and the trend looks likely to continue. Stuart Holden, Gretar Steinsson and Ivan Klasnic are all injury doubts, while Lee, Davis, O’Brien, Gardner and Samuel remain unavailable.

Chelsea are slowly recovering from the dismal run that threatened to ruin their title bid following a remarkable start to the season, but it looks as though Blues are returning to their best. The convincing victories over Ipswich and Blackburn helped the players restore some of the lost confidence and the Blues are expected to finally start playing to their potential. Nicolas Anelka has rediscovered his scoring form and once Didier Drogba does the same, Chelsea will again be unstoppable. Frank Lampard’s injury is giving Carlo Ancelotti headaches before the trip to Bolton, but the good news is John Terry has recovered from a back problem and he should be fit to marshal the defence. Alex, Benayoun, Zhirkov and Borini remain sidelined, but even without them Chelsea look capable of winning this game.

Conclusion

If this game was played few weeks ago I certainly wouldn’t be prepared to back Chelsea, but things have changed of late and now Blues look like a good bet. They have raised their form lately, while Bolton are going through a rough patch, so the Blues might just sneak a victory here.

Verdict: Away win Chelsea (2)

Best Odds: 2/3

Bookmaker: Bet365