Premier League preview: Chelsea v Bolton

Chelsea’s bid to overturn a barren run of form – and perhaps save the job of Carlo Ancelotti – gets no easier when Bolton visit on Wednesday.

The reigning champions are now winless in eight English Premier League games and have slipped to fourth on the table – six points adrift of leaders Manchester United, despite having played a game more.

The pressure on manager Ancelotti only grew with the Blues’ 3-1 loss to London rivals Arsenal on Monday, with barely 48 hours to lick their wounds before the visit of Bolton.

That in itself is another challenge, with Bolton having exceeded the expectations of all but the most ardent supporters under Owen Coyle this season.

Wanderers sit in sixth place and just two points from their hosts on Wednesday, although Chelsea do have a game in hand.

Coyle’s men would be eagerly anticipating the chance to heap more misery on the champions, who seemed to miss a spark when Arsenal took the lead on Tuesday night.

The substitutions of defensive midfielder Ramires, raw youngster Gael Kakuta and defender Jose Bosingwa did little to stem the Gunners’ flow, with Frank Lampard’s first start in four months making little noticeable difference.

Chelsea fans will hope striker Nicolas Anelka can return from his knee complaint, while Bolton midfielder Ricardo Gardner could be set for his own return the same problem.

But his return would be tempered with the loss of dynamic creater Lee Chung-Yong, who has departed to Qatar to represent South Korea in the Asian Cup.

But while Coyle has been robbed of one of his attacking diamonds, Chelsea will still have to be mindful of strike duo Johan Elmander and Kevin Davies, who have contributed 15 goals between them this season.