Bolton vs Nottm Forest Betting Tips

Nottingham Forest will look to continue their promising start to the season as they take on Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium on Friday night.

After opening wins in the Championship and the Capital One Cup, Forest were only denied victory at Huddersfield on Wednesday after they conceded an injury time penalty. It is evident that the squad are more than capable of avoiding the disastrous season they experienced last year which was close to resulting in relegation.

New manager Sean O’Driscoll appears to be attempting to integrate a dynamic style of play in the side based on pace. Lewis McGugan and Dexter Blackstock have enjoyed a good start to the season and both were constant threats in the midweek draw. New signing Simon Cox, a Republic of Ireland international, notched his first goal for the club too. Anchored by Andy Reid, whose exquisite passing range and ability far outweigh the eternal qualms about his fitness, the team certainly have a decent base to enjoy a successful season.

Opponents Bolton bounced back from an opening day derby defeat to Burnley, where they lacked any real inventiveness or drive, to defeat Derby on Wednesday to kick-start their season. Perhaps surprisingly for a relegated side, manager Owen Coyle has managed to retain a decent core of his first team from last season.  Whilst experienced pros such as Nigel Reo-Coker and Gretar Steinsson may prove to be missed as the season progresses, Coyle must be pleased that Premiership quality players such as Martin Petrov and Chris Eagles are there to spearhead their promotion bid.

Eagles helped himself to a goal in the midweek win and coupled with an exciting forward line of youth in Marvin Sordell and experience in Kevin Davies, Bolton will certainly be strong at the Reebok Stadium throughout the season.

Forest had a mediocre away record last season, securing eight wins – this was more than they achieved at home however and they also scored more goals away from home. Bolton were poor at home too though last season and achieved just four wins.

Nevertheless, especially after that morale boosting midweek win, Bolton must be favourites to get the win from the fixture. They are 21/20 with Bet Victor whilst Forest are at 14/5 with Bwin. The best odds for the draw can be found at SkyBet at 13/5.

A tight win for Bolton could be on the cards and they are at 13/2 with Coral to secure a 1-0 win. There is good value too in the odds for a 2-0 win at 9/1. Forest can be found at nines too to win by a 1-0 margin. Kevin Davies or Marvin Sordell are the most likely first goalscorers and both are at 13/2 with Stan James.

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By Louis Richards