Filed under: Bolton, Fulham, Premier League, Football, Match Previews
PREMIER LEAGUE: CRAVEN COTTAGE, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 2011. KICK-OFF: 2000 BSTDomestic matters almost always take precedence but it's hard to see how this game will attract the casual observer on a night when Real Madrid and Barcelona will be doing battle in the Champions League.
On the face of it this is almost a dead rubber with Bolton having long since abandoned any concerns about their Premier League future and Fulham are five points clear of the bottom three with six games left to secure the draw that will take them to 40-point mark.
Neither manager would tolerate the suggestion there is little at stake, however, with both Owen Coyle and Mark Hughes keen to finish the season on a high.
Hughes has overcome a difficult start to his first season in charge at Fulham and will view a top half finish - they currently lie 13th - as a satisfactory return.
Bolton's season was derailed by the 5-0 humiliation they endured at the hands of Stoke in the FA Cup semi-final but pride was restored with the home victory over Arsenal and a second victory at Craven Cottage - they beat Fulham on the way to Wembley - will lift them over Everton and into seventh.
Form Guide: Hughes' side recovered to claim a 1-1 draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers last time out and have lost two of their last nine league games. Bolton's home form has been their strength with Coyle's side losing eight of their last nine league games away from home.
Key Match-up: Bobby Zamora v Gary Cahill: Zamora is still feeling his way back to full match fitness after returning from a broken leg in February but his strength and ability to shield the ball remains undiminished and will test a Bolton defence marshalled by Cahill. The England centre back is the centre of continuing speculation about a move to one of the top four clubs this summer and his performances between now and the end of the season will be closely scrutinised.
Odds: Fulham 4/5 Bolton 15/4 draw 5/2
FULHAM:
Hughes was sent to the stands at Wolves after kicking out at a water bottle in frustration at a series of refereeing decisions and the manager's will to win is unlikely to be diluted, even when his side's safety is assured.
The Welshman was forced to field questions about his future during the opening months of the season when the Cottagers went backwards after their success in reaching the final of the Europa League last season.
Since then, progress has been steady and midfielder Dickson Etuhu has revealed the target for the remaining weeks of the season is to finish in the top half.
"We're not thinking about Bolton - we're thinking about us," Etuhu told the club's official website, fulhamfc.com. "Respect to Bolton because they've done really well this season. We played at their place earlier on in the season and we got a draw in what was a tough game.
"Their manager, Owen Coyle, has done really well but when they come to our patch it's not going to be easy for them. We're playing at home and everyone knows Fulham are a good team at home.
"The manager has a way he wants us to play and we're working hard on that - we believe we can win every game. We go into every game believing that we can win it and that's the case with the games we've got coming up this week.
"We're going to go out there and approach the game in the right manner but we believe we've got enough to win these games."
Andy Johnson, the forward, scored the equaliser at Wolves after stepping off the bench and has warned there can be no complacency until safety has been assured.
"I don't think you can say you're safe at any point," he told fulhamfc.com. "It's so tight at the bottom of the table, and there's still a lot to play for in these last five games.
"Every year people talk about the 40-point mark, but it might be higher than that this year, because everyone keeps beating everyone else down at the bottom. It's the closest run-in I've ever been involved in come the back-end of a season, so we have to take every game as it comes and try and take what we can from each one.
"But at the moment I don't think anyone is safe from 10th downwards, so we're looking forward to the game against Bolton on Wednesday and then the visit to Sunderland next weekend as chances to secure our safety."
Strategy: Hughes has introduced a more positive approach this season and with his roster of forwards now back to full strength, that is unlikely to change in the final weeks of the season. Zamora and Johnson impressed in their brief appearances at Wolves and are likely to start. The priority at the back will, as ever against Bolton, be to nullify the threat of Kevin Davies.
Injury Update: Zamora is fit again after tweaking his back in training last week but Damien Duff is a doubt with an Achilles problem. Philippe Senderos is nearing a return but is unlikely to figure in this game.
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Source: http://www.fanhouse.co.uk/2011/04/25/fulham-v-bolton-preview-cottagers-not-safe-yet-warns-andy-john/
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