So often we see Premier League sides produce excellent results and performances in Europe, only to see disappointment in their next game. Success against Inter will have left Spurs both physically and mentally tired, and Bolton will be looking to capitalise on this.
Owen Coyle’s side have had another solid start to the campaign, especially at home with only Liverpool beating Bolton on their home soil this season. While Coyle has looked to apply his footballing principles since taking over the club, the likes of Kevin Davies and Johan Elmander still have a big part to play in the tactical shape of the Bolton side.
Defensively Coyle has arranged his team with the stubbornness that you would expect from a Bolton side, and they will have to be at their very best to deal with the man on the lips of half the footballing world right now.
Gareth Bale will arrive in the North West brimming with confidence after his second sensational display against Inter within a matter of weeks. But as of yet he hasn’t been able to replicate these performances in Premier League with just two goals to his name this season.
In many ways this is Bale’s most important game of the season. If he is going to really establish himself as one of the world’s very best footballers he needs to produce his top displays on a regular basis, something that as of yet he hasn’t really been able to do.
Bale and the Tottenham side in general will be out to prove the Inter game was no fluke, and there would be no better way to do that by returning back to London with three points. But as mentioned before, Bolton will have real hope of causing an upset, and I for one certainly wouldn’t back against Coyle’s side picking up a surprise win.
