Bolton v Chelsea Betting Preview 2011-10-02

Bolton v Chelsea: Rock-bottom Bolton to suffer another defeat

Chelsea travel to Bolton for a lunchtime kick-off in the Premier League this Sunday. The Blues, favourites in the match odds at 4/7 with Unibet, are currently sitting in third just three points behind the league leaders, while Bolton, priced at 5/1 for the win, are rock-bottom after not taking a single point in the league since the opening day of the season.

It must be a serious worry for Owen Coyle that his team have now lost five matches in a row in the Premier League since they beat QPR 4-0 almost two months ago. Bolton have had a hard fixture list so far but performances haven’t been up to scratch. Before defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates last weekend, Bolton hosted Norwich at the Reebok Stadium in a very winnable game but somehow they managed to lose 2-1 to the newly-promoted side.

Their goalscoring form has been good with eight goals netted, but Bolton’s defending has been atrocious and they have already conceded 16 goals, the most in the league. They have also lost all three games at the Reebok this season so it doesn’t bode well for the arrival of Chelsea on Sunday.

It hasn’t been plain sailing for Anders Villas-Boas since taking over at Stamford Bridge but he is slowly improving the side. He has had to tinker with team selection but it is now starting to take shape for the young Portuguese manager.

The Blues are coming off the back of 1-1 draw away to Valencia in the Champions League midweek. They looked to be in control of the match when Frank Lampard put them in front just before the hour mark but then they let Valencia dictate play for the final 20 minutes and they got their equaliser through a penalty after a Kalou handball. Yet the signs are all there that this Chelsea side are getting stronger and their game seems much more fluid than at the start of the season.

Fernando Torres is suspended for Sunday’s encounter at the Reebok so it is likely that Nicolas Anelka will come in to lead the line. Torress had been playing well in recent matches and his absence will mean Chelsea will just have to work harder to find the goals.

Bolton have conceded 10 goals in three matches at home this season so you should back Chelsea for the win at 4/7 with Unibet but also over 2.5 goals at 4/6. In the correct score market, a 3-1 win to Chelsea is offered at 13/1 with Unibet.

In the last 8 matches on Reebok Stadium Bolton managed to score 0 goals against Chelsea and conceded 16. This makes it pretty clear which direction the game might go.

Tip #1: Back Chelsea to win at 4/7 with Unibet

Tip #2: Back Over 2.5 goals at 4/6 with Unibet

Tip #3: Back Chelsea to win 3-0 at 14/1 with Unibet