Bolton Wanderers

Bolton became the final of three teams to be relegated from the Premier League when they weren't able to defeat Stoke, finishing their season with a 2-2 draw on Sunday at the Britannia Stadium.

Bolton have been relegated after an 11 year stay in the Premier League. #SurvivalSunday

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) May 13, 2012

Blackburn Rovers and Wolverhampton Wanderers will join Bolton in the Championship next season as the three relegated teams.

Queens Park Rangers weren't able to spoil Manchester City's title ambitions, but they will remain in the Premier League thanks to Bolton's 2-2 draw with Stoke City.

QPR lost 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium after allowing City to score two goals in stoppage time to win the league title for the first time since 1968.

The London club finished the campaign one point ahead of Bolton with 37 points, barely escaping relegation after being promoted this season.

After taking a 2-1 lead just before halftime, Bolton weren't able to hold onto their lead as they gave up a penalty kick that Jonathan Walters scored to tie the game. It also was Walters' second goal of the match.

After many scoring chances late in the match weren't capitalized on, Bolton's fate was sealed.

The Wanderers didn't score enough goals to earn enough positive results this season, and their defense was consistently poor. Bolton allowed 77 goals this year, third-most in the league.

Being relegated is probably the most awful feeling a footballer can have. Instead of going to places like Anfield and Old Trafford next season, Bolton will travel to Middlesbrough, Hull and Brighton.

Bolton will now have to work hard next season to earn their way back to the top flight.

Follow @NicholasGoss35

The chances were always slim to none for Bolton to stay in the Premier League on the final day of the season.

Those chances were even higher at halftime of the Trotters' away game at Stoke City, when they were up by a goal on their opponents and relegation rivals QPR were losing to Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.

After going down a goal in the 12th minute at the hands of a Jonathan Walters goal, Mark Davies scored in the 39th minute and then Kevin Davies hit one home in the 45th minute.

At that point, Bolton were up and the club they needed to lose, QPR, were losing at Manchester City.

But with a new half came a set of circumstances that ultimately ended in relegation.

First, QPR struck back at the Etihad Stadium with a Jamie Mackie goal in the 66th minute.

Then, 11 minutes later in Stoke, Trotters keeper Adam Bogdan took down Peter Crouch in the penalty area and then gave up a penalty to Walters, which sealed the club's fate.

Even with QPR falling at the last second to Manchester City, it was not enough as Bolton needed a full three points to stay afloat in the Premier League.

Now, things will have changed at the Reebok Stadium as Bolton will return to the Championship for the first time in 11 years.

The last spell in the Championship lasted from 1998 to 2001, a spell in which they reached the promotion playoffs in all three seasons with promotion finally earned under manager Sam Allardyce at the end of the 2000-01 season.

Both Bolton Wanderers and their fans hope that this spell in the Championship will not last more than one season.

Fabrice Muamba is lucky to be alive, and he knows it. The Bolton star's heartbeat stopped for 78 minutes according to an account he gave and that was published by the Huffington Post.

It is easy to think of athletes in similar situations who haven't been as fortunate: Hank Gathers, Reggie Lewis, Korey Stringer, Miklos Feher and most recently—Piermario Morasini.

Morasini, also a world footballer, collapsed and died on the field on April 14.

Almost a month before, the 24-year-old Muamba suffered his heart attack. Thankfully, it was not unto death.

Muamba truly loves the sport he almost perished playing, but he really realizes the preciousness of the things he nearly lost.

He has a 3-year-old son and fiancee whom he is able to enjoy. That experience, that we can take for granted, was nearly lost.

He credits the cardiologist that came to his aid at the scene and a higher power in these quotes from the Huffington Post article:

Of the cardiologist Andrew Deaner:

He is the reason I have been able to hold my baby son again and continue my life.

Of the divine intervention:

For 78 minutes I was dead and, even if I lived, was expected to have suffered brain damage, but I'm very much alive and sitting here talking now. Someone up there was watching over me.

Sometimes amidst the passion and love for sports, athletes and fans can forget the things that matter most in the world.

Muamba clearly has not.

He realizes how fortunate he is, and how fragile life can be. I personally hope he continues to be blessed, appreciates and enjoys life—whether it includes soccer or not.

Follow @BrianMazique

Bolton star Fabrice Muamba has been released from the hospital and could return to the pitch in just six months time, according to The Daily Mirror.

Muamba has made significant strides after collapsing to the ground during his club's FA Cup quarterfinal match with Tottenham in March.

He had been in intensive care for some time, but has continued to make good progress in his recovery.

Dr. Richard Cooke of London Bridge Hospital talked about Muamba's future, telling The Daily Mirror:

"There are some footballers who do play with them and have had a similar history, so as long as he makes a full neurological recovery, from a heart perspective there is no reason why he couldn't resume his professional football career.

"With his heart stopping for so long, it was an amazing story how they were able to keep him going for such a long period of time.

He later said:

"It depends entirely on the degree of recovery he has made already, but I understand he has made a surprisingly good recovery and all being well, I would not be surprised if he was back playing football in six months."

It's truly amazing that Muamba could return to the pitch such a short time after he nearly lost his life.

There's no question that the Bolton midfielder will take his time and train properly before returning to Premier League action, but the fact that there's even a chance he can play football again is great news for fans everywhere.

Hopefully Muamba can continue his road back to fitness. Seeing him on the pitch again would be a phenomenal moment for the sport, and help give people around the world who are struggling with illnesses the strength they need to fight on.

Follow @NicholasGoss35

It was the biggest story in sport a few weeks back. Fabrice Muamba, Premier League footballer for Bolton Wanderers, collapsed on the White Hart Lane pitch during his side’s FA Cup Quarter Final tie against Tottenham Hotspur, affecting a total call-off of the cup game. 

The whole stadium fell into silence after Muamba fell, and medics and doctors sped onto the grass to try to save the player from any major potential problem that seemed almost inevitable. The player survived a cardiac attack eventually, and is now still recovering from the health complaint, so all seems to have ended up positively. 

The really amazing thing for a lot of people is how the different parts of football banded together to support a player through a health problem that can affect anyone. The hashtag #pray4Muamba trended on twitter as thousands offered their sentiments, the whole country saw the story turned into a national news headline, and across the world many who are in football, or are just fans, prayed that Muamba’s condition would improve. 

There has been some controversy surrounding the issue though. Red Issue, fanzine for Manchester United, has run the headline ‘Grief Junkies Run Riot’, above a picture mocking sentimental fans, on the front cover of their edition for United’s Premier League match against Fulham in March. 

Do they have a point? Are the well-wishers ‘Grief Junkies’? 

Even people that don’t follow football tweeted messages of condolence and support to a sportsman that they may previously not have even heard of. 

A lot of people could have been getting worked up about something that should surely not even matter to them. 

Maybe the fanzine has a decent point. 

A spokesman for Red Issue told the Manchester Evening News that they were jabbing at the ‘self-satisfaction’ of the Twitter users that tweeted their prayers, and ‘at the circus’ surrounding the Muamba fall. The spokesman said that ‘in no way’ was his fanzine’s page aimed at the player himself, but at the ‘fake sentiments’ of the people that got involved with the player and his condition. 

Be that as it may, the front page stirred up controversy, challenging the honesty of the prayers that were being said. 

The counter-argument is, of course, that people genuinely did (and do) care about the player and what he went through; that everyone worried and his health, and that they really wished him well. Compassion. That’s what dishonesty and ostentatious prayer are up against. Good human compassion. 

Apart from the Red Issue, however, there has been a column by Daily Mail sportswriter Richard Littlejohn that despairs at the ‘emotional incontinence’ that it says was sweeping Britain at the time of Muamba’s collapse. 

The cynics are not just fame-seeking fans, perhaps, but actual professional journalists who have challenged the sincerity of the sentiments. Like the Red Issue, Littlejohn voices his own support for Muamba, but still questions others’ emotional responses. 

Are the doubters right? Maybe they are, to some extent. But does it really matter? 

Prayers were said. Sentiments were shown. And, most importantly of all, the player is recovering. Surely that, if anything, is all that matters – not something that is impossible to measure. 

What do you think?

Were the prayers and wishes genuine, on the whole, or just empty words from people jumping on the bandwagon?

Friends don't let friends Tweet drunk.

Remember, kiddies, if you get yourself faded—even if it's on St. Patrick's Day—and then Tweet nasty, ugly things about a footballer who is fighting for his life, you will go to jail.

And, if we're all being honest with ourselves, you would deserve it.

From ESPN Soccernet:

A student who mocked Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba on Twitter after he collapsed at White Hart Lane was jailed on Tuesday for inciting racial hatred.

Liam Stacey, 21, provoked revulsion with comments made while Muamba still lay on the pitch after suffering a cardiac arrest during Bolton's FA Cup quarter-final with Tottenham on March 17.

Police were inundated with complaints as members of the public reported the student's comments. Stacey, a Swansea University biology undergraduate, was quickly tracked down and arrested.

Oh my. What an idiot. Now Liam Stacey is going to jail for 56 days.

So what did he say? If you really, really want to know, click here. If not, well, you aren't missing anything.

Now that the shock has passed, it may be time to start asking some tough questions. As the fellas over at Who Ate All the Pies suggest, there could be some sticky freedom-of-speech issues lurking here.

That's not to say that racially abusive speech is protected (is it in England? I'm not sure about America). It's only to say that society hasn't quite worked out all the moral, ethical and legal issues of social media yet.

Could Twitter trials become the last frontier of jurisprudence?

I write this article with at least a little better feel than what I, like most football fans, was inflicted with on Saturday night. Fabrice Muamba of the Bolton Wanderers collapsed on the field that day while playing in the quarterfinal of the FA Cup against Tottenham Hotspur.

Everyone prayed for his recovery even though a part of them feared the worst. It brought back memories of Marc Vivien Foe and Besian Idrizaj and their tragedies. Thankfully, Muamba is a lot safer now, though he is still some way off from being considered normal just as yet.

The match was abandoned and rightly so by referee Howard Webb. There might not have been any result that day, but football had actually won. Almost a week is about to pass since the incident and still support for Muamba is ever increasing. I am glad to say that the sport of football continues to unite people. I am actually proud to follow such a sport which has passion, camaraderie and the will to win without losing touch with humanity and emotions.

As Muamba tries to get normal at the London Chest Hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest because of which he collapsed, his family thanked everyone for their support.

We would like to firstly thank God for answering our prayers.Thank you to everyone for the love, prayers and support over the past few days. In particular we owe an enormous gratitude to the Bolton and Spurs medical teams for their quick reaction on Saturday, and the fantastic team here at the London Chest Hospital. We have been overwhelmed by all the kind messages we have received. The support we have had from the fans, not just from Bolton but football supporters around the world, has given us so much strength.

We have been particularly touched by the support from the football community globally.Thanks also to our family and close friends and thank you to the media for respecting our privacy during this very difficult time.

The immense power of this global sport has well and truly been reflected this past week. There are two sides to each coin. If football fanaticism creates rivalry causing riots at times, it even has the almost divine like force within to quench hatred and antipathy and gather blessings in plenty for ones who need them. No wonder it is termed 'the beautiful game'.

We all hope that Fabrice Muamba gets to the playing field as soon as possible doing what he does best. For the time being, he is surely forming at least a little part of our prayers.

One week after the scary incident involving Fabrice Muamba, Bolton will return to the pitch to take on Blackburn in a crucial Premier League match. Both teams are fighting to avoid relegation, so there will be a lot at stake in what's sure to be an emotional game.

The Trotters currently sit two points behind Queens Park Rangers for the final safe position, but do have a game in hand after their clash with Aston Villa was delayed. While it won't be easy for them to be focused purely on football Saturday, they don't have any other option.

Blackburn is five points clear of the relegation zone thanks to consecutive victories over Wolverhampton and Sunderland. A win over Bolton would finally give them enough clearance to start sleeping a little easier at night, but a loss would leave them in serious danger heading into the stretch run.

Where: Reebok Stadium in Bolton, England

When: Saturday. March 24 at 11 a.m. ET

Watch: FoxSoccer.tv

Betting Odds: Bolton +125, Blackburn +200, Draw +230

Fabrice Muamba Update

Muamba's family released a statement on Friday to thank fans for all the well wishes since the Bolton midfielder collapsed due to cardiac arrest against Tottenham (via Yahoo! News):

"Even though Fabrice has made great progress over the last couple of days, he is still in intensive care, and still has a long period of recovery ahead," Muamba's fiancee Shauna Magunda and his father Marcel said in a statement on Friday.

"Thank you to everyone for the love, prayers and support over the past few days."

Player to Watch for Bolton: Tim Ream

Ream has held his own since arriving from the New York Red Bulls. The 24-year-old American was brought in to replace Gary Cahill and, while it will take him awhile to live up to Cahill's standards, he's off to a respectable start.

The most important thing for him moving forward will be to start being more aggressive. He's been a little tentative at times, as most players new to the Premiership are. Now that he has some experience under his belt, however, it's time to start establishing himself.

Bolton were wise to snag him from the MLS early, because he has a bright future ahead of him. His value will only continue to skyrocket in the coming seasons.

Player to Watch for Blackburn: Junior Hoilett

Hoilett has been a dominant force over the past few weeks, scoring three goals in his last two starts. He's sure to generate a lot of interest during the summer if the Rovers are unable to lock him up with a contract extension.

It took a couple years for him to find his footing with Blackburn, but the results have started to show, rewarding the team for their dedication. He's become a far more complete player, and has started to find ways to contribute even when he's not scoring.

The Rovers have to do everything within their power to keep him beyond this season, but helping them avoid relegation would be a nice consolation prize if a deal can't be reached.

Key Matchup: Zat Knight vs. Yakubu

Yakubu will be the most dynamic offensive threat on the pitch. He's netted 21 goals in 14 games for Blackburn after arriving from Everton to pace the Rovers offense. The Toffees wish he would have produced like that while with them.

Slowing him down will be the task of Knight. The veteran defender has been in and out of the Bolton lineup in recent weeks, but gives the Trotters their best chance of keeping Yakubu at bay. His steady presence at the back will be welcomed on a tough day.

Both guys have struggled with consistency, so it's impossible to know how they'll perform on Saturday. Whichever one steps up will give his team an advantage.

Prediction

Bolton 2, Blackburn 1

The world waited with bated breath as Fabrice Muamba was tended to. The Trotters' midfielder suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch and continues to recover in intensive care. 

The important thing to note is that Muamba is not out of the woods yet and is still very much ill according to physicians. 

Here is the latest on the scariest moment we have witnessed this season in any sport as a beloved athlete nearly lost his life during the heat of competition. 

Fabrice Muamba

The Associated Press reports Muamba is currently "seriously ill" at London Chest Hospital. His heart had ceased working for 78 minutes during Bolton's FA Cup match on Saturday. 

Manager Owen Coyle reserved exuberance but issued some hope at the midfielder's current status. 

Where we are now from that moment on Saturday evening, we are astonished. But within that, it is extremely important we don't get too ahead of ourselves because we have to remember that Fabrice is still in intensive care and in a serious condition.

An important part of the report is that Muamba had indeed been tested close to the match and was given a clear bill of health. The report states:

The cause of the cardiac arrest has not been discovered. Doctors said that Muamba had undergone a routine screening for heart defects in August. He was checked again Sunday, with the test producing a normal result.

Muamba continues to be on the minds of every sports fan in the world. 

Testing

The obvious fallout is that many question the testing of players and a report issued by BBC Sport answers that. 

The report states Premier League footballers may indeed be screened more often in the aftermath of Muamba's collapse. 

Club doctors will discuss increasing the number of mandatory tests from the current level of just one at aged 16. Some teams also scan new players as part of a pre-signing medical.

The hurdle remains in funding. Football Association's head of medical services, Dr. Ian Beasley, states the following, via the report:

That is something we would have to work out how to fund. Whether that is from the Premier League or from a national institution, that is something to be decided later on.

There are funding issues in this. It is not just about football - it is about the whole of the athletic population.

If it was decided by government and public health that screening in young people was beneficial and saved enough lives - don't forget in this country there is a cost-benefit analysis of health care - then the government should think about funding it.

 

Bolton Wanderers 

The sport comes second to the health of its players. While Muamba is in the forefront of our thoughts, Bolton has to move on and compete, and that is exactly what Owen Coyle believes will occur. 

He states the following as Colton looks to resume play against Blackburn on Saturday, per ESPN:

We have to go and play the match and do it to the best of our ability. Will it be difficult? Absolutely. Some people are affected in different ways than others.

I wouldn't ask anybody to play in these circumstances if they weren't in a position to do so. It will be a difficult game of football because all of our thoughts will remain with Fabrice.

Coyle will play those who cannot afford the opportunity to sit out during this emotional time. 

Follow @gabezal