Bolton at home. The Trotters come to town. It got me thinking…why the Trotters? It must be the most unflattering nickname in football. Apart from the pathetic Lillywhites that is. Apparently, in the 19th century, one of Bolton’s pitches was adjacent to a piggery and clearances often ended up in there. Players had to ‘trot’ through the pig-pens to retrieve the balls. I’ll be pig sick if we don’t garner three points today that’s for sure.
Of course, the visit of Owen Coyle’s side gives Jack Wilshere a chance to reacquaint himself with his team-mates from last season after he spent a loan spell at the Reebok.
AW has had his say in the Boy Wonder’s nightclub antics – Stuart Pearce had his say when he dropped him from the England under 21 side – ahead of the Premier League clash.
‘He should have been home in bed,’ he said. ‘You don’t make a career at the top without knowing how to behave. If you are a football player and you stay out half-an-hour longer than you should, it is a massive problem.
‘Jack is focused and I believe he was always focused. He wants the ball and he wants to play. It could have been a concern for Pearce, but I believe Jack Wilshere is a happy man on a football pitch.’
The team news is that we will be without Thomas Vermaelen through an Achilles injury and Sebastien Squillaci will seemingly make his debut as his replacement.
As we know Theo is out for six weeks after suffering an ankle injury with England in midweek. RVP is still out too. Samir Nasri is available again after a knee op as is Denilson after an abdominal injury.
Team (from): Almunia, Clichy, Squillaci, Koscielny, Sagna, Rosicky, Song, Fabregas, Eboue, Arshavin, Chamakh, Fabianski, Wilshere, Gibbs, Diaby, Vela, Denilson, Nasri, Djourou.
Right, I’m off to the home of football…come on you rip-roaring red machine!
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