Bolton v Chelsea

Two out of form clubs meet at the Reebok tonight but Chelsea at least have history in their favour. The Londoners are unbeaten in Bolton for over 13 years and also won the reverse fixture 1 - 0 in December. However Chelsea have won only 2 from their last 10 and are vulnerable and again missing Picklive star Frank Lampard. Bolton haven't won in 2011 and are a pretty poor Picklive team to boot. Could the new scoring system or new signing David Wheater give them a lift?

Taylor, Holden and Petrov should be the main beneficiaries of the new scoring system. All three tend to get a smattering of shots and crosses off and so should get a lift. That may not be enough to warrant picking them though. Robinson, Davies and Cahill have the biggest averages, Knight and Holden are next.

Davies' average is slightly misleading as it's boosted by a respectable 87 against Spurs. That would've been at least 40 points higher under the new system as he scored two goals in that game. Yet he's only had 4 shots off target (and none on target) in 5 Picklive games when you exclude his 3 goals. And that sums him up. Pick him if
you think he'll score as it's the only way he'll make the top 5.

Robinson and Cahill are more reliable but their averages are still quite average. Bolton just don't rack up the points that their league position suggests they should. Having said that they do tend to get players in the top 5, they had 2 players in it away to Sunderland, 3 at home to Blackburn, 4 at home to Birmingham City, 2 at home to Spurs
and 1 at home to Liverpool. All of which suggests picking at least one Bolton player tonight.

So if you fancy either Davies or Elmander to score pick them but, if not, go for Robinson or Cahill (Wheater could be worth a punt if he starts). Holden, Petrov and Taylor are all capable of big scores but tend to be subbed a lot and will be up against a formidable Picklive midfield in blue.

Chelsea picks are more straightforward. I've blogged about them here, here and here and my advice doesn't differ much from that. Their stats page on Picklive is very useful as they've played plenty of games.

My recommendation: Robinson, Essien, Terry, Mikel and one random pick decided minutes before kick off.


A late update: Drogba and Malouda should be the main beneficiaries of the new scoring system, especially Malouda!


Good luck!


by BensBulls
(Ben Wraith)