On Sky
Now in the top two, Bolton get to entertain the nation tomorrow night as they travel to Oxford for a live televised match, and look to extend their advantage over a chasing pack.
It could be another tough scrap though. Oxford are one of those teams which can turn it on, epitomised by the reverse fixture in fact, when the Yellows left us red-faced and frankly outclassed us taking away all three points in a 2-0 win. On the positive side, we are a lot better now than were there at that point in time.
A four point gap at 9.45pm would go down very, very well indeed.
Vital Quotes:
“It has to be ruthless and professional?We need to run ourselves into the ground again because there is plenty of time to rest in the summer.”
Parkinson in the Bolton News
Oxford United Team News:
Arguably their brightest talent, Ryan Ledson will be missing for the hosts, as he is on international duty with the England Under 20 side. Apparently changes will be made from their last game, as Michael Appleton has picked the next few sides in advance with rotation in mind. We had a manager who did that. Forgot his name.
One returnee is Cristian Ribeiro, who had a hip injury
Player to watch: Chris Maguire
Hard to pick a standout player in Ledson`s absence, but in Maguire they have a player with lots of experience in the division above. He has 14 league goals since joining just over a year ago, and a decent-enough nine this season so far.
Bolton Wanderers Team News:
I would expect an unchanged team again. It`s not broken at the moment, unless Spearing replaces someone in midfield.
Player to watch: Adam Le Fondre
He seems to have clicked now. It took a while, but striking from the spot on Saturday meant that was his fourth goal in three games. He seems to be stirring at the right moment.
Match Facts & Stats
Bolton`s last visit to Oxford was in April 1999, a Division 1 fixture which finished goalless.
Bolton have 11 points from their last six games, compared to Oxford`s haul of nine.
Oxford have won 8, drawn 4 and lost 6 of their games at home in the league. Bolton have won 8, drawn 3 and lost 5 away.
Bolton have conceded the fewest away goals in the league, but our clean sheet last Tuesday was the first away since November`s win at Northampton. But we have five away clean sheets overall.
Match Prediction:
I will go for a 1-1 draw. I was impressed by Oxford back in October, so don`t feel overly confident in saying we`ll beat them!
Next Fixtures:
We are away to Shrewsbury on Saturday, before hosting Chesterfield the following weekend.