Bolton Wanderers: Premier League Season Preview

With the Premier League season now rapidly approaching, I have decided to take a look at each of the 20 sides that will be playing at the top level of English football during this upcoming season.

I have decided to actually go in reverse order, with Wolverhampton starting the list off and Arsenal concluding it right before the start of the Premier League season.

In the 15th installment of this series, I will now look at Bolton Wanderers, who finished 14th last season, as Bolton were a likely relegation candidate before a sharp rebound in the second half of the season.

Review of Last Season

After a terrible start to last season that saw Bolton as a likely relegation candidate, manager Gary Megson saw himself sacked and in came Burnley boss Owen Coyle to help the Wanderers avoid relegation.

And with Coyle in charge, that is exactly what happened, as Bolton were able to pick up points against sides such as Fulham, Stoke City, and Birmingham City and were able to stay up for another season.

Transfers

Incoming Players: Robbie Blake (Burnley), Martin Petrov (Manchester City), and Marcos Alonso (Real Madrid).

Departing Players: Ali Al Habsi (Wigan Athletic), Nicky Hunt (Bristol City)  Ricardo Vaz Te (Panionios).

Bolton Wanderers Fixture List

1. Will Owen Coyle be able to keep up his magic from last season?

After Owen Coyle took over, Bolton played with more energy and were a much better club than under Gary Megson, which was the reason why Bolton were able to stay up.

My guess is yes, Coyle will be able to keep up his magic from last season, and Bolton will be better than last season.

2. Will Martin Petrov perform up to expectations?

Extremely unhappy at Manchester City, Martin Petrov will now get to play everyday with Bolton and we will be able to fully see what he can bring to this club.

Petrov should live up to expectations, but he will also need to have his team play strong around him for everything to work out.

3. Can Bolton use their August fixtures to help stay up this season?

To start off the season, Bolton will have Fulham, West Ham, and Birmingham City to start off their season; three matches that the Wanderers can get points out of.

Of course, for a side such as Bolton (that only had 39 points last season), they will need to do better than this to succeed, and getting early season points truly can go a long way.

4. Will Bolton be able to stay up once again?

I think that Bolton will be able to stay up this season, as they have a manager that is motivated to help this club get better, and with some great talent, Bolton will stay up.

For a preview of Chelsea's Premier League season, please click here.