The Wanderers make the long journey down to London Tuesday, and the chances of them coming back in a good mood seem slim. Chelsea are at the top of the league, 1 point clear of Manchester United and 3 points ahead of Arsenal, and judging by their current form they have no intention of relinquishing that position. Bolton, on the other hand, have lost 3 in a row and only remain 5 points clear of the relegation zone because of other club's terrible form.
If I were Owen Coyle, I would use this match to experiment a bit. Bolton have not scored in (I believe) 8 of their last 11 league matches. It is time to try something new. We are likely to get anything from this match, so why not go for it. Put on a show, attack, attack, attack, and see what happens. To be fair, the problem has not been creating chances really, but putting the chances created on target. Here are some suggestions;
Attack wide with the fullbacks: Chelsea play very narrow through the midfield, and this is an area where they can be exploited, but Paul Robinson cannot be involved. I would play Gretar Steinnson at right-back and Sam Ricketts at left-back. They can both get forward, and there will be space to put balls into the box.
Ivan Klasnic. He is the only forward that we have who makes you feel like he is going to score every time he touches the ball. I think he could play off Elmander quite well, but Coyle, much like his predecessors, would sooner drink hot piss than drop Kevin Davies, so that will not happen, but I can live with Klasnic and Davies up top.
Move Jack Wilshere inside. Everyone keeps saying he will move inside eventually, just do it now. It worked when we did it with Stuart Holden, and I think Wilshere is a similar player. He will see more of the ball, and it will allow us to get some legitimate pace wide in the person of Vladimir Weiss. It is a very young, very attacking midfield, but I like it. Why not give it a try, we have nothing to lose.
2 comments:
FA Cup final of Portsmouth v. Chelsea is interesting.
1 v. 20. What if Portsmouth won the FA Cup and got relegated in the same year. Also, I heard some of Portsmouth's players won't play because they don't have the cash to pay the extra loan fees. Thoughts??
If Portsmouth win they will be the first to get relegated the same year as winning the FA Cup. Several clubs have reached the final and got relegated in the same season, and in all likelihood, Portsmouth will join that list.
Reports are that almost all of the players due appearance bonuses have agreed to decline them in order to keep playing. It is really in the players' best interests to keep playing, because some of them are still trying to earn World Cup places, and most of the others will want to audition for a move to another top flight club next season.
Also, it prevents the final few weeks from becoming a farce.
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