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Premiership Betting: Just because Bolton need to beat Sunderland doesn't mean they will

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"Knowledgeable" Nik Wardle tells us why Bolton are in serious trouble this season, why they may be in even worse trouble by kick-off tomorrow and how opponents Sunderland will approach the game

With Chelsea away on the final day of the season, Bolton will be desperate for three points from Saturday evening's clash at home to Sunderland, live on Setanta Sports. They will know the results of all their relegation rivals by the time they take to the pitch and there's a strong chance they could be in the bottom three by kick off.

It's been an up-and-down time since Gary Megson took over. They've managed to win seven Premier League games under him, including their home game against Manchester United, and have seven points from the last three games. They've strung a few mini-runs together before this season - the trouble for Bolton has been they've often been followed by a bad mini-run. Just when they look like pulling clear, they drop back in and vice-versa.

If Bolton do go down many will point to the January sale of Anelka. You can't blame the player for wanting to leave and you can't really blame the club for cashing in. However, you can blame the management for not effectively replacing him. The loan signing of Rasiak was a strange one. He flopped at Tottenham and has flopped at Bolton - although to be fair, he hasn't had much of a look in. So why sign him then?

Sunderland's win against Middlesbrough confirmed their place in the English elite for next season. Job done for Roy Keane, although a lesser-named manager may have been called into question a bit more this season. Keane has spent a lot of money and his signings have been patchy. He'll demand more money for next season and the Sunderland fans will have a right to demand more from Keane and his signings in future.

Bolton are at [1.66] to win, Sunderland out at [6.0], with [4.2] for the draw. Sunderland are in pretty good form, having won four of their last six, so their longish odds are slightly surprising although they do have a poor away record and only cash for league placings to play for.

There's some pretty interesting betting in the Half Time/Full Time market. If you fancy The Trotters to be leading at half time but The Black Cats to be victorious, you can get great odds at [48.0] - the reversal of this is currently trading at [27.0]. A lot will depend on the attitude of the Sunderland players. Bolton were let off the hook at Tottenham last week and they'll be hoping for a similarly tepid performance from Sunderland. We shall see if Keane has the force of personality to motivate his players when they have little to play for.