Bolton Wanderers v Manchester United,
The Barclays Premier League,
Saturday 17 January, 2009,
Reebok Stadium, 3pm Kick-Off.
Last season Wanderers ended a 29-year home winless streak against Manchester United when they sunk the Red Devils at the Reebok, and boss Gary Megson will be gunning for a repeat on Saturday afternoon.
It was the first victory of Megson's managerial reign at the club, on a day which will live long in the memory of the Bolton supporters.
A ferocious atmosphere was whipped up at the Reebok that afternoon and it likely to be the same this weekend with a near sell-out expected.
Three points for the men from Old Trafford will see them return to the summit of the Premier League, whilst a win for the Whites would end a run of four successive defeats.
The Mancunians haven't conceded a single goal in their last nine top-flight outings, but Wanderers will be buoyed by the fact that a win could see them move up to tenth spot in the table.
Republic of Ireland defender John O'Shea is predicting a tough test, but he believes the incentive of returning to the top of the Barclays Premier League will see United prevail.
Speaking to Manchester United's official website, he said: "We said months ago that we wanted to be in a position where we could win our games in hand and go top of the league.
"It would be a great advantage for us to go top, but Bolton will be up for it on Saturday. They will have seen that we only got past Wigan with one goal, and they'll maybe get confidence from that.
"It's always a difficult game there and we will have to be up for the battle as we were against Wigan on Wednesday."
The referee for the big game is Andre Marriner from Birmingham. He has yet to take control of a Bolton fixture in his 20 matches this season, in which he has dished out 68 yellow cards and six reds.
The history books reveal that there have been 114 meetings between the two clubs over the years. Wanderers have won 42 of those and United 48, whilst there has been 24 draws.
Team News
Gavin McCann (toe), Johan Elmander (hamstring) and Kevin Nolan (suspension) are definitely ruled out for Bolton. Gretar Steinsson is back in contention after serving a one-match ban at the Emirates last Saturday.
Gary Cahill could return after missing the last three matches with a hip problem while Sebastien Puygrenier is available to make his debut after receiving international clearance.
Wayne Rooney is definitely missing for Manchester United after limping out of their midweek victory over Wigan with a hamstring strain. Carlos Tevez took a heavy knock after replacing the England international, but he should be fit if selected.
Sir Alex Ferguson is without defensive duo Rio Ferdinand (back) and Patrice Evra (foot) so Jonny Evans and John O'Shea should deputise.
Opposition Manager - Sir Alex Ferguson
One of the most decorated managers in world football, Sir Alex has won almost everything possible in the English game, aside from the LDV Vans Trophy!
22 years in the hot-seat at Old Trafford has reaped no less than ten Premier League titles, five FA Cup successes, and two League Cup winners' medals. Add the two Champions League victories and the UEFA Cup success in 1991 and indeed he has no less than 20 major trophies to his name.
Ferguson was appointed manager at Old Trafford back in November 1986 following the sacking of Ron Atkinson, having forged a name for himself north of the border with Aberdeen, where he again had won trophies galore.
In the time since, he has created a legacy for himself due to the continued success since the conception of the Premier League in 1992. It is said that he has built three teams during that time, nurturing the likes of Ryan Giggs, David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville through from the academy to international prominence.
If you look at some of his recruits in the transfer market where Peter Schmeichel, Eric Cantona, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Cristiano Ronaldo amongst many others have been brought to the club, then it would be fair to say that the 66-year-old definitely has an eye for a player.
Having shelved plans to retire in 2002, Sir Alex now has over 1200 games to his name as the boss of Manchester United.
Opposition Key Player - Carlos Tevez
Once dubbed the 'Argentine prophet for the 21st Century' by Diego Maradona, Tevez is already idolised in South America after successful spells at Boca Juniors in his homeland, and Brazilian side Corinthians.
Initially he had to win over fans in Brazil, but eventually he captained Corinthians to the title and became the first foreign player to collect the league's Player of the Year award in almost 20 years.
Having spent the 2006/07 season with West Ham, where he went 19 games prior to netting his first goal for the Hammers, Tevez joined United and helped them to win the Premier League and Champions League last term.
The arrival of Dimitar Berbatov has seen the forward's opportunities somewhat reduced this season, but with Wayne Rooney missing through injury on Saturday then Tevez should feature even though he picked up a slight knock against Wigan Athletic in midweek.
Betting
To get all the best odds for the game, visit our official betting partner Bet2Go.
Wanderers are best priced at 15/2 to take all three points with a draw available at 3/1. For the pessimists out there who think Manchester United will win the match, they can find odds of 1/2.
Sebastien Puygrenier is 33/1 to score on his debut, whilst a draw at half-time and Bolton win at full-time is available at 16/1.
A 2-1 Wanderers victory is 25/1 with a 1-1 draw priced at 15/2.
Click here for more information and hundreds more of superb odds.
Listen Live
If you can't make it to the Reebok Stadium on Saturday afternoon, you can listen to live uninterrupted commentary on Wanderers World with the club's new official commentator Phil Gittins. The broadcast starts at 2.30pm.
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