English Premier
2012-04-28 - Sunderland vs Bolton Wanderers
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Saturday 28 April 2012 - Kick Off 3pm
Sunderland
Martin O'Neill's arrival as manager of Sunderland saw an upheaval in terms of results and performances, but it is understandable they have hit a buffer in their season with little to play for. There was a real hope that the side can finish in the top half of the table, but it just feels like they are looking forward to a break in the off-season now safety is more than assured.
Sunderland are 11th in the Premier League table and still have a real chance of finishing in the top half and are just 4 points behind 7th placed Everton. They have a 7-6-4 record at the Stadium of Light this season, scoring 24 goals and conceding 14- only Manchester City have conceded fewer goals at home so far this season.
The team have failed to win any of their last 6 games in all competitions, while goals have really dried up as they have failed to score in 5 of those games. 3 of their last 4 games have finished 0-0, including insomnia-curing games against Wolves and Aston Villa. Sunderland have failed to win, or score in, any of their last 3 games at the Stadium of Light, although they have suffered just 1 loss in 6 games here in all competitions.
Sebastian Larsson and Kieran Richardson have both been ruled out until the new season while Craig Gardner is suspended after being sent off at Villa Park.
Bolton Wanderers
Fans of Bolton Wanderers would have been a little worried when seeing the likes of QPR and Wigan Athletic enjoying healthy runs in the League, while Blackburn Rovers' win over Norwich City left the Trotters a little more concerned. It looked to be going wrong for them as they fell 1-0 down at Aston Villa on Tuesday, but two goals in a minute turned around that game and renewed confidence that they can survive.
Bolton are 18th in the Premier League at kick off, but they have one extra game on their relegation rivals and are just 1 point behind QPR and Wigan Athletic in the safety zone. The team have now picked up more points on their travels than they have at the Reebok Stadium, going 6-0-11 while scoring 19 goals and conceding 34.
They keep picking up points in the League, the latest three coming at Villa Park during the week. That means they have now picked up 13 points from the last 21 available in the League and that is not bad for a team fighting to avoid relegation. Bolton have won 2 of their last 3 away games in the League, and they have won 4 of their last 9 on their travels- an interesting note is they have lost the other 5 games without scoring a single goal.
Owen Coyle has already had a little moan about the injuries his squad are dealing with and it seems to be more of the same coming into this game. He claims a further six players picked up issues from the win at Aston Villa- Mark Davies, Chris Eagles and Ryo Miyaichi all missed the last training session yesterday.
Head to Head
Sunderland won 0-2 at the Reebok Stadium earlier this season thanks to two late goals while still being managed by Steve Bruce.
Their home form against Bolton has been solid with 3 wins from the last 4 Premier League games here against them, although the exception was a 1-4 loss.
Bolton have won just 1 of their last 5 visits to this ground in League games, while they have failed to beat Sunderland in the last 6 overall including 5 consecutive defeats.
Prediction
Sunderland look like a team that is playing out the season, although I am sure they a big performance in them when they face Manchester United in the last game of the season.
Their last couple of League games have been turgid affairs, while their lack of goals has been evident.
Bolton Wanderers have not been playing badly in recent weeks, the worst performance being the 0-3 home loss to Fulham, while they seem confident when playing away from home. The injuries in the squad are a worry, but they showed their heart and determination in winning on Tuesday night at Aston Villa and I can't help but feel they are over-priced to win this one.
They haven't enjoyed much success against Sunderland recently, but they are facing them at the right time with plenty more motivation than their opponents. Only six clubs can boast that they have won more away games than Bolton so far this season, so the 4.00 on the Trotters winning this one looks a touch big.
With Sunderland struggling for goals, I just feel Bolton can edge this contest and move out of the relegation zone for 24 hours at least.
The Statistics :
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Pick :
Sunderland 0-1 Bolton Wanderers
