Bolton Wanderers v Spurs: Can Spurs close gap on Arsenal or will Bolton exit the drop zone?
What a game this promises to be. Both Bolton and Tottenham are desperate for the points to satisfy their own goals.
Bolton Wanderers can move out of the bottom three with a result here while Harry Redknapp will be desperate to put the disappointment of being overlooked for the England job behind him as Spurs can climb to within a point of third place Arsenal if they leave the Reebok victorious.
Unfortunately for Spurs, their record at the Reebok reeks of abject failure. They have managed just one win at Bolton over the past 33 years. That is a terrible statistic for a team chasing Champions League football, but these records are there to be broken. Can Redknapp inspire his team to victory tonight?
Bolton Wanderers gave their survival hopes a boost at the weekend with a draw at Sunderland. Combined with defeats for Blackburn and QPR, it turned out to be a great weekend for them. Owen Coyle's men have their destiny in their own hands. If they beat Spurs they can shoot out of the bottom three at QPR's expense and go level on points with Aston Villa and Wigan. But Spurs have a wealth of talent at their disposal. Players like Bale, Van der Vaart, Modric and Adebayor have the ability to change a game in an instant. Can Bolton keep these four quiet for 90 minutes?
Spurs have amazingly failed to win a single Premier League game on their travels since the turn of the year and that has cost them dearly as Arsenal regained their form and put a run of wins together. But the Gunners have dropped points of their own in recent weeks and left the door ajar just enough to give Spurs a sniff of beating them to third. With Chelsea just 90 minutes away from ruining one side's campaign, third place is now essential to guarantee Champions League football.
So will Spurs boost their chances of playing in Europe's elite competition next season or will it be Bolton celebrating having taken a massive step to staying in the Premier League? Our pundits have their say.
Bolton Wanderers v Spurs; Kick Off 8pm May 2 2012
Prediction Panel
|
Arsenal |
Don McMahon |
1 |
V |
0 |
|
Aston Villa |
Frank Pattison |
1 |
V |
2 |
|
Blackburn |
Terry Kennedy |
1 |
V |
2 |
|
Bolton |
Dave Blackburn |
0 |
V |
2 |
|
Chelsea |
Joe Tyler |
0 |
V |
1 |
|
Everton |
Chris Goodwin |
1 |
V |
0 |
|
Fulham |
Neil Springate |
2 |
V |
1 |
|
Liverpool |
Mark Williams |
2 |
V |
1 |
|
Man City |
Callum Rothwell |
1 |
V |
2 |
|
Man Utd |
Peter Lee |
0 |
V |
1 |
|
Newcastle |
Michael Stout |
1 |
V |
2 |
|
Norwich City |
Sue Read |
2 |
V |
2 |
|
QPR |
Arjun Swaminathan |
1 |
V |
2 |
|
Stoke City |
Philip Eccleston |
1 |
V |
1 |
|
Sunderland |
Tony Ratton |
2 |
V |
1 |
|
Tottenham |
Mike Richards |
1 |
V |
3 |
|
Swansea |
Jim White |
2 |
V |
1 |
|
West Brom |
Andy Wakeman |
1 |
V |
1 |
|
Wigan |
Alan Moore |
0 |
V |
2 |
|
Wolves |
Chris Cox |
1 |
V |
1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
OUR EXPERTS |
|
|
|
|
|
Writer |
Colin Illingworth |
3 |
V |
1 |
|
Writer |
Steve Coulter |
3 |
V |
0 |
|
Writer |
Phil Bundy |
1 |
V |
0 |
|
Writer |
Mitch Waddon |
2 |
V |
3 |
|
Writer |
Matt Turner |
TBA |
V |
TBA |
|
Writer |
Chris Pettitt |
1 |
V |
2 |
|
Writer |
Hugh Larkin |
1 |
V |
2 |
|
Villa fan |
Lynette Ranson |
TBA |
V |
TBA |
|
Blackpool fan |
Phil Trow |
1 |
V |
1 |
|
Boro fan |
Sue Gardener |
0 |
V |
2 |
|
Fulham fan |
Russell Goldman |
2 |
V |
2 |
|
Pompey fan |
Dan Taylor |
1 |
V |
0 |
|
Pompey fan |
Peter Rendle |
1 |
V |
3 |
|
West Ham fan |
Matthew Beeby |
1 |
V |
0 |
|
West Ham fan |
Nigel Telfer |
2 |
V |
1 |
|
Editor |
Antony Melvin |
TBA |
V |
TBA |
Panel Verdict
Spurs just edge it.
Home: 12; Draw: 6; Away: 15. TBA 3
* Do we have it right or do you know better? We’d love to hear your views.
