Arsenal v Bolton Wanderers
Football : English Premier League
Saturday 11 September 2010 - Kickoff 3pm

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Arsenal

Arsenal have made a positive start to the season but injuries have once again reared their ugly head as Robin Van Persie once more faces a spell on the sidelines. Cesc Fabregas continually has quotes attributed to himself that seems to show an underlying unhappiness at the club and that could be a concern if he fails to live up to his big performances this season.

The Gunners have picked up 7 points from their opening games of the season, and have managed to get through 2 tough away assignments at Liverpool and Blackburn Rovers. Those points could be invaluable come the end of the season when their rivals have to visit those grounds. Arsenal also enjoy playing the 'lesser' sides of the Premier League at home, and continued that trend from last season with an easy 6-0 win over Blackpool this year.

Theo Walcott was the latest Arsenal player to be hit with an injury, although he will be back within a couple of weeks. Van Persie will be out for 6 weeks as he joins Samir Nasri and Nicolas Bendtner on the sidelines.

Possible Arsenal Line Up: Almunia, Sagna, Clichy, Vermaelan, Koscielny, Song, Diaby, Rosicky, Fabregas, Arshavin and Chamakh (4-3-3)

Bolton Wanderers

Bolton Wanderers have improved under the guidance of Owen Coyle, and they have made some interesting signings to ensure the team keeps moving up the table. Bolton have proved a tough side for Arsenal to crack in the past and will be hoping to once more provide that kind of opponent for Arsene Wenger's side.

There was a lot of positive energy surrounding Wanderers as they fought back from 0-2 against Birmingham City in their last game to earn a point, even with 10 men. This backed up their 1-3 win at West Ham United from the previous week and ensured they remained undefeated as we enter September. Of course, this is going to be the toughest challenge they have faced this season.

Jussi Jaaskelainen is out through suspension and will be replaced by Adam Bogdan. Ivan Klasnic may also be missing while Sean Davis remains a long term casualty.

Possible Bolton Wanderers Line Up: Bogdan, Steinsson, Robinson, Knight, Cahill, Muamba, Cleverly, Holden, Lee, Petrov and Davies (4-5-1)

Head to Head

Arsenal have now won 7 Premier League games in a row against Bolton Wanderers as the myth that they cannot play against their North West opponents is put to bed.

Arsenal are unbeaten in their last 11 games at home against Bolton, winning 4 in a row at the Emirates Stadium.

Prediction

Arsenal have been hit with injuries again but this time look like they will be able to cope with the arrival of Chamakh into the squad. They built their title challenge last year by disposing of those sides from the bottom half of the Premier League with ease and know they will need to do the same this season to have an impact in the title race.

Bolton Wanderers play much more football under Owen Coyle than they did with previous managers but that now means the bigger sides find them a little easier to deal with. They still have a physical presence in the side and will need to exploit that side of things during tough away encounters like this one.

I cannot look beyond a home win here, especially with the record Arsenal have compiled at the Emirates Stadium over the last 12 months. Bolton will allow the Gunners the opportunity to play their football here and that will be their undoing. I'll take the Gunners to cover the handicap here.

The Pick :

Arsenal 2-0 Bolton Wanderers

HANDICAP BETTING :

Take Arsenal -1.5 Asian Handicap