The third round of the FA Cup takes centre stage this weekend when the Premier League sides enter the competition and one of those, Bolton, make the short trip to take on Macclesfield.
League Two Macclesfield have, of course, had to win two ties to get to this stage and although they comfortably brushed aside East Thurrock in the First round, it took them two attempts to get the better of Chelmsford City of the Conference North in the last round. A 1-1 draw away was followed by a narrow solitary goal victory when the teams met in the replay at Moss Rose. It’s the first time since 2009 that they have got this far and one that occasion they were also drawn at home to a Premier League side from the North West; Everton, to whom they lost narrowly 1-0. Saturday’s game will be a boost to their finances at Moss Rose but it is also a chance to play against a Premier League side again and the fact it’s against a local rival means the fans will come out in their droves and make it an excellent atmosphere.
Bolton are in the midst of a relegation battle after a terrible first half of the season. Wednesday’s 2-1 away victory against Everton was only their fifth win all season long despite it being their 20th league game to date. Owen Coyle has stuck to his guns and continued to play the expansive football which served them so well last season. As well as comfortably avoiding relegation last term, they reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup only to be humiliated 5-0 by Stoke at Wembley. Clearly that defeat has left a mark on the players still at the club as they started the season very slowly and looked low on confidence for much of it. Their last four games have saw two wins and a draw so there is definitely evidence there to suggest that things are turning around and they are getting some sort of consistency over the festive period.
Macclesfield are enjoying a decent enough season in League Two where they are 12 points clear of the relegation zone in mid-table. An run at the play-off’s look’s out the question with an 11 point gap to bridge so they can focus a lot of attention on tomorrow’s match in the knowledge that they should be plying their trade in League Two come August. Their home form is also very strong as they have suffered just two defeats at Moss Rose all season.
Bolton will no doubt rest some of their players and with the likely sale of Gary Cahill to Chelsea expected to be completed this weekend, there is little chance of their captain featuring. However they do have a big squad with the likes of Tuncay, Robbie Blake and Sam Ricketts all looking to be involved.
Coyle is obviously targeting Premier League survival this season and the FA Cup will have to play second fiddle but they are relatively well blessed with a big squad and should still have too much quality for their opponents tomorrow.
My Selection: Bolton to beat Macclesfield
Best odds available: 8/11 available with Victor Chandler
Final score: 2:2
