Bolton Wanderers v Portsmouth: team news, predicted XIs, what's been said, referee, key stats and form guides

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of kick off (8pm).

Bolton Wanderers team news

Bolton boss Ian Evatt has said his side will be hampered for tonight's game against Pompey.

Evatt has admitted defender Declan John and midfielder Kieron Lee will miss out on the fixture with back and heel problems respectively.

Wanderers will also assess top scorer Oladapo Afolayan and January signing Kyle Dempsey, after the pair sustained knocks in their 1-1 draw against high-flying Wigan on Saturday.

Evatt will also be without midfielder Josh Sheehan who is continuing his recovery from an ACL injury sustained in November.

Predicted XI: James Trafford, Will Aimson, Ricardo Santos, George Johnston, Marlon Fossey, MJ Williams, Aaron Moreley, Kieran Sadlier, Elias Kachunga, Dion Charles, Jon Dadi Bodvarsson. Subs: Joel Dixon, Gethin Jones, Alex Baptiste, Liam Gordon, George Thomas, Xavier Amaechi, Amadou Bakayoko.

Pompey team news

Pompey boss Danny Cowley revealed his squad’s injury situation is ‘the best it’s been since August’.

The enforced 16-day break allowed the players some time off to recover and admits most of the injured players have since returned to training.

Shaun Williams is one of those members to return after fracturing his back against Charlton in January and is closing in on full match fitness.

The 35-year-old might make tomorrow’s 18-man squad, while Reeco Hackett (knee) and Kieron Freeman (ankle) will be sidelined for the remainder of the campaign.

Michael Jacobs came on as a second-half substitute in their last game against Wycombe, and Tyler Walker has recovered from his slight ankle knock.

Predicted XI: Gavin Bazunu, Hayden Carter, Sean Raggett, Clark Robertson, Mahlon Romeo, Joe Morrell, Louis Thompson, Denver Hume, Michael Jacobs, Aiden O'Brien, George Hirst. Subs: Ollie Webber, Connor Ogilvie, Ryan Tunnicliffe, Shaun Williams, Ronan Curtis, Marcus Harness, Tyler Walker.

What’s been said

Ian Evatt

‘It’s hard to really go off the meeting earlier this season because I think we were a patched-up team out of form, and we still lost the game on an odd goal and a mistake I believe.

‘I think this is a completely different game. I think both teams have been in good form. Both teams have picked up since the return of the year. Portsmouth have some very good players, some very good attacking players.

‘They’ll ask us questions, but I must re-emphasise that it’s not really about them. We give them respect of course, but it’s about what we do and if we get to the levels that I know we can get to like the second half on Saturday, then we’ll be more than a match for every team in this league.

‘But it’s more about our own focus and being the best version of ourselves. iIf we can be that, then I believe we can beat anybody.’

Danny Cowley

‘We’ve only lost once in 10 with this group of players so I feel we are in a good place.

‘We’ve had a good opportunity after the small break to get back on the grass and to train and with this group of players. We’ve never really had a sustained period of time on the grass with them because the games have been Saturday-Tuesday.

‘We’ve enjoyed our time on the grass investing in ourselves and making us better. Now look forward to the run of fixtures we have in front of us.’

Matchday odds (Bet365)

Bolton Wanderers: 6/5

1-0 6/1, 2-0 9/1, 2-1 8/1, 3-0 20/1, 3-1 18/1, 3-2 28/1

Pompey: 23/10

1-0 17/2, 2-0 16/1, 2-1 11/1, 3-0 33/1, 3-1 28/1, 3-2 33/1

Draw: 12/5

0-0 8/1, 1-1 11/2, 2-2 14/1, 3-3 50/1

Referee

Marc Edwards

Key Stats (All competitions)

Bolton Wanderers

Record this season: P43 W17 D11 L15

League Position: 11th (59 points)

Top goalscorer: Oladapo Afolayan (11)

Most Assists: Kieran Lee (6)

Discipline: 63 yellow cards, 2 red cards

Pompey

Record this season: P41 W17 D11 L13

League Position: 10th (59 points)

Top goalscorer: Marcus Harness (11)

Most Assists: Ronan Curtis (7)

Discipline: 72 yellow cards, 3 red card

Form guide

Bolton Wanderers

D 1-1 Wigan (A) – League One

W 1-0 Crewe (A) – League One

L 1-0 Plymouth (H) – League One

D 1-1 Morecambe (H) – League One

W 3-0 Gillingham (A) – League One

Pompey

D 0-0 Wycombe (H) – League One

L 1-0 Plymouth (A) – League One

D 0-0 Ipswich (A) – League One

W 3-1 Crewe (A) – League One

W 4-0 Accrington (H) – League One

Other fixtures (7.45pm kick-off unless stated)

AFC Wimbledon v Charlton Athletic, Cambridge United v Wycombe Wanderers, Fleetwood Town v Lincoln City, MK Dons v Crewe Alexandra, Morecambe v Oxford United, Wigan v Accrington Stanley.