Football – England – Championship
Saturday 13th September 2014 – Kickoff: 1500hrs
Bolton Wanderers will be looking to end their run of five Championship matches without a win this afternoon when they host Sheffield Wednesday at The Reebok Stadium following four defeats and just one draw.
Bolton go into this afternoon’s clash on the back of three straight defeats which were inflicted by Middlesbrough at home 1-2 followed by away losses at Brighton and Leeds United. It’s been a terrible start to their new campaign under manager Dougie Freedman who will need to string together some results soon to relieve the pressure.
But The Trotters have failed to win in their last four on home turf with defeats to Leicester City (at the end of last season) and the aforementioned Middlesbrough, along with two draws against Birmingham City (being 2-0 up before Birmingham salvaged a valuable point to retain their Championship status) and Nottingham Forest this season.
In fact, Bolton have won just twice in their last eight at the Reebok and those wins came against a struggling Blackpool who were near the bottom of the division at the time, and Barnsley who were eventually relegated to League One.
Onto Sheffield Wednesday, and the previous notes should give reason to have a fair amount of confidence in The Owls at least avoiding defeat here, particularly given the impact that manager Stuart Gray has had on the team since his arrival.
Gray was appointed as successor to David Jones on 1st December last year and Wednesday were languishing second from bottom in the Championship six points adrift of Millwall and the safety position of 21st place. An unbeaten run of eleven matches in all competitions saw Sheffield Wednesday climb out of the relegation zone and indeed finished in a creditable 16th place and nine points above the bottom three.
A defeat to Nottingham Forest before the break was Sheffield Wednesday’s first loss this season following wins over Brighton (away), home draws against Derby County and Millwall, and away wins at Middlesbrough in the Championship and Premier League Burnley in the Capital One Cup.
I believe therefore, that confidence is on Sheffield Wednesday’s side going into this match, and with Bolton still struggling to find form, The Owls look good for at least a point here – I’ll back the visitors with the well priced quarter ball. Wednesday might nick this 1-0.
Pick: Sheffield Wednesday AH+0.25 @ 1.87 Bet Victor
