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With Aston Villa’s demise the top of the league once again appears calcified, so, like Kim Kardashian crammed into a designer dress, the bulk of the tension will be at the bottom. &nbsp;Here is the first of a series of assessments of this season’s relegation candidates.
As wretched as Manchester City and Tottenham have been at times this season, they are nine points clear.&nbsp; They may not inspire much toward the end, but even if they stay static, it’s hard to see enough of the knuckle-draggers clambering up to knock them into the relegation zone.&nbsp; Therefore Bolton are the first to technically be considered candidates for relegation.
Form: Bolton sit in twelfth place, on 34 points, five points clear of the drop.&nbsp; They have a reasonable run of form in the past eight games, winning three, losing three and drawing two.&nbsp; The club been hit or miss this season, drawing just four of the first thirty matches, but that is an advantage.&nbsp; It’s easier to get to 40 points by winning twice in eight matches, than by gutting out six draws.
Schedule: Bolton have the points advantage, and they also have one of the easier schedules.&nbsp; They face one top four side, Chelsea, at Stamford Bridge.&nbsp; They have three benign home fixtures (Middlesbrough, Sunderland, Hull City) to get two wins.&nbsp; On current form, a date with Aston Villa could be ripe as well.&nbsp; Bolton could conceivably pick up a point or two away to Portsmouth, Wigan Athletic or Man City.&nbsp; On schedule alone, Bolton getting to safety seems probable.
Injuries: One of the advantages to having few dynamic players, is not being dependent on such creative forces.&nbsp; None of their injuries (Mark Davies, Vaz Te or O’Brien) has been critical to Bolton’s fortunes this season.&nbsp; Matty Taylor is the only midfielder to have scored a goal this season, and Kevin Davies is the only reasonably effective striker.&nbsp; As long as those two stay healthy, Bolton should be reasonably competitive.
Prognosis: One bad weekend could see Bolton thrust back into the race, but, at this point, they have the best position, a soft schedule and a stable squad.&nbsp; It would take an epic collapse, intermingled with startling runs of form from three or four other clubs to see Bolton relegated.&nbsp; It’s probably not going to happen.

The Relegation Rumble: Bolton Wanderers

The Relegation Rumble: Bolton Wanderers - World Soccer Talk

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The Relegation Rumble: Bolton Wanderers