Television scheduling means the best has hardly been saved till last this weekend but Wigan versus Bolton on Monday night should be entertaining and it is very difficult to imagine there not being goals.
Both Wigan and Gary Megson’s side have been highly unpredictable this season but it looks for certain that both are now involved in a relegation battle and I fear for the pair. Wanderers lack quality throughout while the Latics appear to have forgotten how to defend.
Roberto Martinez could not have wished for a better start as a Premier League manager when he saw his team win at Villa Park on the opening day and while Wigan have produced glimpses of such brilliance since, the 3-1 win over Chelsea at the DW Stadium being the highlight, they have also put in some extremely suspect displays.
A 4-0 thrashing at bottom club Portsmouth was followed quickly by that 9-1 humiliation at White Hart Lane and goals are certainly the order of the day when it comes to games involving the side from the north-west.
Wigan’s 2-2 draw with Stoke last time out was entertaining, and featured that wonder goal from Maynor Figueroa, but Martinez must be worried at what he sees on a weekly basis from his defenders and they were very poor when Birmingham edged a five goal thriller in their latest home fixture.
The 3-2 score line that day actually flattered Alex McLeish’s men, Birmingham were the better team throughout, but it only underlined Wigan’s naivety at the top level and nine of their last 12 matches have featured three goals or more.
I’m sure Martinez would like significantly more protection for Chris Kirkland in goal but his player’s overriding mentality is to get on the front foot and that often leaves them exposed. Martinez now looks set to play two strikers on Monday, abandoning his usual formation, and with the exciting Hugo Rodallega due to be joined by Jason Scotland in attack Bolton will certainly have plenty to think about.
While Wigan’s defending at times lacks any sort of cohesion their opponents on Monday do not usually fair too much better but both possess a goal threat and this could be a rugby score. Since Bolton started the campaign with successive 1-0 defeats, against Hull and Sunderland, both sides have found the net in 12 of their last 14 fixtures and that trend looks set to continue.
Back-to-back 5-1 and 4-0 thrashings at the hands of Aston Villa and Chelsea respectively earlier in the season were not wholly unexpected but Bolton proved they are still an attacking force to be reckoned with by finding the net six times in their last two outings, in wins over West Ham and a draw with Manchester City, and summer signing Ivan Klasnic is finally proving his worth.
The Croatian now has five Premier League goals to his name, a more than decent pre-Christmas return, and appears to have forged a productive partnership with the ever dependably Kevin Davies.
With just two points separating the pair, this game is crucial for both but the incentive of the win should not be underestimated and I expect both to go for it. The circumstances and statistics point to this being an open match and certainly the 2.05 in the overs market appeals.
3pts Back Over 2.50 Goals (Wigan vs. Bolton) @ 2.05 (Blue Square)