West Bromwich Albion Preview

By Mark Heys
October 21 2005

Bolton Wanderers are back in Premiership action this weekend as they face West Bromwich Albion at the Reebok Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

The Wanderers achieved a positive result in their UEFA Cup game away at Besiktas on Thursday evening and will be hoping to follow that up with some points on the board against Bryan Robson's Albion side.

It won't be easy for the Trotters though as the Baggies defeated Arsenal last weekend and have had the advantage of not having played the extra game in midweek.

Added to that Bolton have the unwanted record of not having beaten Albion in the Premiership, with the last Bolton league win coming in August 2000 when goals from Isaiah Rankin and Gareth Farrelly gave the Lancashire side all three points at the Hawthorns.

Games between the two teams are usually tight with three out of the last four meetings all ending in 1-1 draws, Albion winning the other game 2-1 last October thanks to goals from Zoltan Gera and Kanu.

Bolton are expected to make a number of changes for this game as Jussi Jaaskelainen, Kevin Davies, Kevin Nolan and Bruno N'Gotty could all return to the starting line up.

Ivan Campo and Nicky Hunt are still on the treatment table but there could be a first team return for Gary Speed, Stelios Giannakopoulos and Jay-Jay Okocha after recent injury concerns.

Jared Borgetti, Joey O'Brien and Abdoulaye Faye are all pressing for places in the starting eleven having impressed the manager during the game at the Inonu Stadium in Istanbul.

Ricardo Gardner is suspended after being sent off during last Saturday's 5-1 defeat against Chelsea so striker Henrik Pedersen is once again expected to fill in as a makeshift defender to compensate for the temporary loss of the Jamaican international.

Albion boss Bryan Robson has a doubt over star midfielder Zoltan Gera for this match as the Hungarian international continues to be affected by a troublesome groin injury.

Robson also hopes that Kanu will show no ill affects of a recent hamstring problem which has been causing the Nigerian star some form of discomfort in recent weeks.

Kevin Campbell, Ronnie Wallwork, Paul Robinson and Steve Watson have been given the all clear to play by the physio after small injuries had been picked up in the Arsenal game last week.

PREMIERSHIP RECORD

09/11/2002 BOLTON WANDERERS 1 (Frandsen) WEST BROMWICH ALBION 1 (Dobie)

08/02/2003 WEST BROMWICH ALBION 1 (Johnson) BOLTON WANDERERS 1 (Pedersen)

02/10/2004 WEST BROMWICH ALBION 2 (Kanu, Gera) BOLTON WANDERERS 1 (Giannakopoulos)

01/01/2005 BOLTON WANDERERS 1 (Diouf) WEST BROMWICH ALBION 1 (Gera)

PREMIERSHIP FORM GUIDE:

Played: 4

Won: 0

Drawn: 3

Lost: 1

CONNECTIONS

Sam Allardyce, Peter Barnes, Len Cantello, Franz Carr, Barry Cowdrill, David Cross, Julian Darby, Fabian De Freitas, Andy Dibble, Delroy Facey, Carsten Fredgaard, Asa Hartford, Russell Hoult, Tony Kelly, Harry Kinsell, Richard Sneekes, Bob Taylor, John Thomas.

IT HAPPENED WHEN BOLTON PLAYED THE BAGGIES

Bruno N'Gotty was sent off in the first Premiership fixture between these two sides in November 2002 after appearing to lash out at Albion forward Scott Dobie. The big Frenchman's blushes had been spared though as Per Frandsen headed home a last gasp equaliser.

Last years fixture at the Hawthorns saw Stelios Giannakopoulos score Bolton's consolation goal straight from a free kick.