Match Preview: Bolton v Charlton

Bolton Wanderers and Charlton Athletic have a rich and long history. The two sides first met in 1923, when a David Jack goal proved enough for Bolton to claim victory in front of 41,033 supporters.

Since then, the two sides have met on no fewer than 83 occasions. Wanderers have the upper hand with 42 wins to Charlton's 27, and 14 draws to complete the set. Legendary Bolton strikers Nat Lofthouse and John McGinlay share top scorer rights with nine apiece.

Charlton are managed by ex-England left back Chris Powell, who himself made over 655 career appearances for various clubs including Watford, Derby County, West Ham and Charlton. He has been in charge at the Valley since 2011 when he took over from Phil Parkinson. Powell oversaw promotion from League One in 2011/12 as Champions, and they have consolidated in the Championship ever since. An impressive 9th place finish in 2012/13 saw them just three points away from the Play Offs.

A busy summer of transfers saw four permanent incomings: Mark Gower from Swansea, Richard Wood from Coventry, Ben Alnwick from Spurs and Simon Church from Reading. Cameron Stewart joined on loan from Hull City as did Wanderers striker Marvin Sordell, who is of course ineligible to play against his parent side this weekend.

The exit door also saw plenty of action. An incredible 22 players have left the club either permanently or on loan since June, including familiar names such as Ricardo Fuller and Bradley Wright-Phillips who joined Blackpool and New York Red Bulls in MLS respectively.

Charlton started the season poorly, having to wait until their fifth game before tasting victory in a 2-1 home success over Leicester City. They find themselves in 21st place ahead of this weekend's game against the Whites. Goals have been hard to come by, with Simon Church, Yann Kermogant and Cameron Stewart all scoring three times.

Last Five Meetings

26.08.2006 - Charlton Athletic 2 v 0 Bolton Wanderers

25.10.2006 - Charlton Athetic 1 v 0 Bolton Wanderers

31.01.2007 - Bolton Wanderers 1 v 1 Charlton Athletic (Henrik Pedersen)

15.12.2012 - Bolton Wanderers 2 v 0 Charlton Athletic (David Ngog x2 - yes, you read that right)

30.03.2013 - Charlton Athletic 3 v 2 Bolton Wanderers (Marvin Sordell, Medo Kamara)

Prediction

Head - Bolton Wanderers 2 v 0 Charlton Athletic (Jermaine Beckford, Joe Mason)

Heart - Bolton Wanderers 5 v 0 Charlton Athletic (Beckford, Mason, Chris Eagles, Lee Chung Yong, Andre Moritz)

Charlton will be a tough side to break down. Wanderers need to be at their best and will have to be more clinical than against Wigan where defensive lapses combined with frugal chance-taking to mean that yet again defeat was snatched out of the jaws of victory.

COYWM.