English FA CUP
2012-03-27 - Tottenham Hotspur vs Bolton Wanderers
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English FA Cup
Tuesday 27 March 2012 - Kick Off 7:30pm
This game is live on TV
Tottenham Hotspur
It is hard to imagine what the atmosphere will be like at White Hart Lane just ten days after the events involving Fabrice Muamba, but the Tottenham Hotspur players will hope to give their fans something to shout about with a place in the FA Cup Semi Final at stake. Harry Redknapp has made it clear that the tournament is very important to them, even if some changes will be made to his side.
Spurs bring in a 10-3-2 record from their games at White Hart Lane this season, scoring 31 goals and only conceding 14 into this game and they have also won 2 of their FA Cup games here against Cheltenham Town and Stevenage to reach this stage. The team also won an away game at Watford, but they need to change their recent form if they are to progress at the first time of asking.
The team have drawn their last 2 League games which means they have now won just 1 of their last 7 games in all competitions, that being against League One Stevenage. Their form at White Hart Lane has been better with 3 wins in their last 5 in all competitions, although they were recently beaten 1-3 by Manchester United here.
Aaron Lennon and Ledley King should both be available for Harry Redknapp and the manager has also indicated he will be changing things from the 0-0 draw at Chelsea. The likes of Carlo Cudicini, Ryan Nelson and Jermain Defoe will all be hoping to start in this game.
Bolton Wanderers
While the atmosphere will no doubt be tough for the Tottenham Hotspur players, it will be even tougher for the Bolton Wanderers players. Owen Coyle will likely ask his players if they feel comfortable playing here, while the League remains the priority for the manager with a big game at Wolves due to take place this weekend.
Bolton earned a vital 2-1 win over Blackburn Rovers at the weekend at the Reebok Stadium in their first game since the Fabrice Muamba events of ten days ago. The team will bring a 4-0-10 away record to White Hart Lane, scoring 14 goals but conceding 29 in those games. They won at Millwall in the last Round of the FA Cup and have also beaten Macclesfield Town (after a replay) and Swansea this season to reach this Quarter Final.
They have given themselves a real chance to retain their Premier League place following back to back League wins over QPR and Blackburn Rovers, two sides in the relegation fight with Bolton. The away form has not been so good as Bolton have lost 4 of their last 5 away games in all competitions, the only exception being the 0-2 win at Millwall from the Championship.
Gregg Wylde was recently signed after being released by Glasgow Rangers and could make his debut here. I think Owen Coyle would have made changes for this game in normal circumstances as the League takes priority, but there are no real indications of his plans for this one.
Head to Head
Tottenham Hotspur beat Bolton Wanderers 3-0 at home earlier this season in the Premier League, meaning they have won 5 in a row at home against their visitors in all competitions.
Spurs have lost just 1 of the last 6 games against Bolton overall.
Prediction
It is very hard to know how the players are going to be feeling as they come together at a venue where the almost-tragic events surrounding Fabrice Muamba took place just ten days ago. That alone makes it difficult to pick anything in the win-draw-win market or handicap markets with any real conviction so I will look elsewhere.
Spurs are going to make a couple of changes to their side to keep things fresh and one player that may benefit is Jermain Defoe who is expected to begin up front.
Defoe has scored in both home FA Cup ties already this season and also scored the third goal in Spurs' 3-0 win over Bolton in the League.
The England international is one of the greedier strikers in the Premier League so I expect he will get enough shots, if he starts, to get find the net and he is playing with a little bit to prove to the manager who seems to like Emmanuel Adebayor and Louis Saha much more.
At odds against, it looks like he could be worth chancing but keep an eye out on team news to ensure he is starting as I expect he will be.
The Pick :
Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Bolton Wanderers
