Bolton Wanderers Predictions: Rob

To go along side our predictions for the football season in general, the LoVS Team will also be giving their Bolton Wanderers predictions for the coming Championship season. And just like with the football predictions, come the end of this year we will see who did best.

This time Rob sticks his neck out with his predictions:

How do you see the season going?

Clearly we have a tough start to the season having to face Derby County and Middlesbrough first up but, as David Wheater said on Sky Sports' #92Live on Tuesday, it can be an advantage to get the big teams out of the way first. I fancy us to have a better start than the last couple of seasons and build on that to potentially challenge for the play-offs with a bit of luck.

Who will be our top goal scorer and why?

Gary Madine. Madine looks like the imposing striker we've been lacking since Super Kevin Davies' heyday and he's also shown in pre-season that he can score different types of goals. If we can give him decent service then I fancy Madine to notch 15+ goals this season.

Who will be our best player and why?

Zach Clough. Marc Iles was waxing lyrical about Clough on the LOVpod on Sunday night, marveling at his skill on the ball and his attitude. If he stays fit this season I think he can be the catalyst to much better fortunes than we've suffered of late.

Who will be our worst player and why?

Dean Moxey, if he plays enough. Every time I see Moxey play he further proves his inability as a player, but I hope he proves me wrong this season. Failing that, the Lousy Liams (Trotter and Feeney) for obvious reasons.

Who will be booked the most?

Jay Spearing. He bloody loves a yellow.

Who will get sent off the most?

I don't think we had all that many reds last season - only Matt Mills and Dorian Dervite stand out off the top of my head. I'll go with Dervite, given our midfield's tendency to leave the centre backs painfully exposed to counter attacks.

How many injuries will we have throughout the season?

632.  And that's just the walking injury table that is Mark Davies. But hopefully we can keep it to less than ten this time around.

Will Neil Lennon still be our manager come the end of the season?

Yes. I don't think Lennon has come to Bolton simply to put his name in the shop window for the next available Premier League job. He wants to prove himself as a manager away from his Celtic achievements and he has targets that he wants to hit as Bolton manager. I don't see him leaving out of choice until he sees those through - and I firmly believe he can, despite the obvious financial restrictions.

Will we still have Zach Clough come the end of the season?

Absolutely yes. I firmly believe that it's in Zach's best interest to stay with us and get first-team football under his belt to progress as a player and really prove his quality. It's worth remembering Clough has only made ten first-team appearances, of which only eight are in the league, so he still has a lot of work to do despite excelling in his brief stint in the side last season. I think he will go on to become a quality player, but he needs a solid grounding of first-team football to prepare him for that.

Which old, semi-legendary player will we sign in Winter?

Ronaldinho, although he's probably a bit too legendary. I'm going to stick with full legend and say Jussi Jaaskelainen, once he's realised he wants to be our player coach.

Where will we finish and why?

Realistically I think a position between the play-offs and mid-table is achievable if we can keep players fit and play the way Lennon wants us to. I'll go with 9^th.