English Premier
2009-03-14 - Bolton Wanderers vs Fulham
A Sports Betting Pick by Gooner
Football: England, Premier League
Saturday, 14th March 2009 - Kickoff 15:00
Bolton (11th - Home Rec : 6-2-6 14:15)
Bolton have been using home advantage at the Reebok Stadium to good effect recently, winning the last three games on the trot here and four of the last six.
That's good news because Bolton have been pretty abysmal on the road recently, and with a league record of 4-1-7 from the last dozen games the overall form has not been hot.
Bolton are still only an average side this season, and so I cannot put their home win chances much above the "norm" for any league fixture.
Bolton Team News :
Bolton manager Gary Megson has no new injury worries as he selects from a virtually fully fit squad. Joey O'Brien (knee) remains the only long-term absentee.
Fulham (10th - Away Rec : 0-7-7 3:13)
Fulham's away record is surprising, without a win, but they've still managed seven draws including 0-0 results at Liverpool, Aston Villa and Arsenal.
The Cottagers have obviously developed a "park the bus" mentality for some away games, but it's surprising just how often it's worked - with Fulham managing a 0-6-3 record in their last nine away games with all six draws ending in 0-0 score lines.
The midweek home loss to Blackburn was a poor result, but not exactly a surprise after Fulham had also lost 0-1 at home to Hull a week prior.
Fulham Team News :
Fulham centre-back Aaron Hughes faces a spell on the sidelines after sustaining a rib injury with Toni Kallio likely to replace him.
Striker Bobby Zamora may return after recovering from the hip problem which kept him out on Wednesday.
Head to head
Bolton have generally had the berst of things when Fulham come visiting wirth three wins fom the last four match-ups although last seasons visit ended in a 0-0 draw.
The reverse fixtures at Craven Cottage have been dominated by Fulham who have a 5-1-0 record in the last six seasons, including a 2-1 success this season.
The Betting Verdict
I have Bolton at just over 50% likely to win this match, and so the price of 2.10+ has to be worth a shot.
However, given Fulham's continued sequence of 0-0 draws and having scored just three away goals this season then two other punts do raise possibilities.
These play on Fulham's inability to score, and their tenacity in somehow still managing to earn a point.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Bolton 1-0 Fulham
BEST BETTING TIP :
For a result bet then BOLTON TO WIN looks worth a shot.However, better profits can be earned with BOLTON TO KEEP A CLEAN SHEET paying out 2.40 at Paddy Power which covers most predicted win scorelines (1-0 or 2-0) but also the 0-0 draw as well.
A final option to consider is the NO GOALSCORER BET which is 9.00 at Ladbrokes and 9.00 at Boylesports which covers the 0-0 score line at a top price and gives extra insurance against an "own goal" being the only goal of the match.
