Chelsea v Bolton – Carling Cup Wednesday

Both sides won their Premier League fixtures on the weekend, but in very different styles. The Blues were wholly dominant in their 5-0 win over Blackburn at Stamford Bridge, while Bolton needed a late winner to beat Everton 3-2 at home. The big victory for Chelsea came after a 4-0 beating of Atletico Madrid at the Bridge during midweek, and both games will have lifted some concerns over two away defeats that Chelsea had suffered in the league. The game against Blackburn was their most impressive attacking display of the season, and they will be cheered even more to see Frank Lampard getting in amongst the goals again. Chelsea seemed to have let go of some reservations over the past couple of games, perhaps the disappointing away defeats having done some good in terms of showing them exactly how they need to perform week-in week-out.

Under Jose Mourinho, Chelsea would attack all competitions with their full squad, and the Carling Cup was no exception. New boss Carlo Ancelotti took a slightly different approach in their 1-0 victory over QPR in the previous round, where he shuffled the team and gave some match experience to fringe players such as Hilario, Borino and Hutchinson. That game also signalled the return of Joe Cole after a long lay off through injury, and Cole, starting his first Premier League game of the season on Saturday against Blackburn, looked back to his old best, putting in a magnificent and creative performance which will please Blues fans and England boss Fabio Capello equally.

Bolton have found life in the Premier League a real struggle this season, with Sunday’s victory over Everton lifting them into the middle of the table from just above the relegation zone. Their problems have all been at home, where they have now just won one of their five matches played at the Reebok. On their travels they have won two and lost two, and will probably head to Stamford Bridge with a full team in order to give their fans some renewed hope of a revival in fortunes. Under Gary Megson, Bolton are not quite the same physical force which they have been in the past, but they still favour a lot of set pieces as their main sources of goals. In all likelihood they will need to at least find a couple of those to edge past Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea have won all of their games this season in all competitions, having only conceded one goal. This is the archetypal uphill battle for Bolton, and even if Chelsea put out what is to be considered a weakened side, they should still be able to more than match the challenge of the visitors

Chelsea to win: 1/3 at Bet365
Draw: 4/1 at BetFred
Bolton to win: 11/1 at SkyBet

Betting Advice: Chelsea at Stamford Bridge is pretty much a banker. One thing that is not in Chelsea’s favour is that they are collectively quite an aging side, with six of the players starting on Saturday against Blackburn being in their 30’s. After playing three matches between last weekend and this, they will have probably earned a rest, and players like Salomon Kalou will be taking the field as senior players. Bolton should have a little confidence for this game, after they performed well at Old Trafford and were unlucky to come away empty handed, and then having won their first home game of the season.
Chelsea to win in extra time: 8/1 at SkyBet