Preview: Bolton Wanderers v Bitter Spurned Heartbroken Ex-Lover Who Can't Move On

So this weekend sees the game that will define the early stages of Phil Parkinson's tenure as manager of Bolton Wanderers as we welcome Bradford City to the Reebok Stadium.

The game is, ostensibly, between second and fourth in the table, but we all know that it represents more than that. Since Parkinson left Bradford for the big job in the summer we've had to contend with a ton of butt-hurt Bratfut supporters drone on using social media to get their point over about how they miss him, but won't admit it, so they react with anger and nasty words.

It's funny, in a way, how they mirror the spurned ex-lover who can't move on. They claim life is better with their new partner, but deep down they know that it's not the same. It's not what came before and they will never again have that special connection.

I know this is true, because it's what we have all felt since Sam Allardyce left Bolton all those years ago. The key to happiness, Bradford fans, is to let go.

Anyway, on with the football.

Wanderers have Zach Clough back from injury, though target man Gary Madine is expected to miss out again.

Bradford, now under the stewardship of Stuart McCall, are undefeated, though have drawn five of their eight games in the division thus far.

McCall oversaw an influx of transfers, helped by their new German owners, bringing in the likes of Nicky Law from Rangers, Matthew Kilgallon from Blackburn Rovers and Rouven Sattelmaier from Stuttgart. Romain Vincelot and Colin Doyle were the only players brought in for a fee, from Coventry City and Blackpool respectively.

Outgoings included Jamie Proctor to Bolton, whilst Mark Beevers chose to join Wanderers over Bradford, but again, their fans weren't that bothered really (but actually were).

They began the season with a disappointing 0-0 draw at home to Port Vale, which was followed by three wins on the trot against Peterborough United, MK Dons and Coventry.

Four draws on the spin since have hinted at an all-too-familiar inability to finish teams off. This is probably Parkinson's fault.

So it's shaping up to be an interesting match. Bradford are expected to bring nearly ten times their usual away following - probably to see the manager that they definitely don't miss.

They took 400 to Gillingham, 500 to Millwall, yet the chance to see their ex has over 4,000 of the mouth-breathers making their way to the big city. I hope they enjoy their day out.

COYWM.