By Mark Heys
August 17 2007

Bolton Wanderers go in search of their first Premiership win since the start of April this weekend when taking on Harry Redknapp's Portsmouth side at Fratton Park on Saturday lunchtime.

Wanderers have failed to pick up maximum points in the Premiership since two goals from Andranik Teimourian helped them on their way to a 3-1 win at Wigan Athletic on Easter Monday.

Manager Sammy Lee has still yet to get a first league win as a manager but the performance in the second half of the defeat against Fulham in midweek was encouraging.

Pompey have drawn their last two games, the first being an away point at newly promoted Derby County last weekend and this was then followed by a creditable point against Manchester United in midweek.

Lee could give a Bolton debut to Irish defender Andy O'Brien against the club whom he left earlier this week as doubts continue over the future of Abdoulaye Faye.

Heidar Helguson is expected to continue in attack at the expense of injury victim Kevin Davies and fellow new boy Daniel Braaten could once again be amongst the Wanderers substitutes.

Ricardo Gardner, Blerim Dzemaili, Stelios Giannakopoulos, Joey O'Brien and Ricardo Vaz-Te join Davies on the sidelines for Bolton but Swedish international Christian Wilhelmsson is pushing for a place in the sixteen.

Portsmouth are without the suspended Sulley Muntari after his sending off against Manchester United and there are also doubts over the fitness of Gary O'Neil (ankle) and Niko Krancjar (foot).

Worse still for manager Redknapp is that he could be faced with a defensive crisis as Lauren (ankle) joins groin injury victims Sol Campbell and Dejan Stefanovic as serious doubts for Wanderers visit.

Last season a fine Kevin Nolan volley gave Bolton their first win on the South Coast in nearly four decades so the Trotters will be hoping for a similar story this time around.

LAST TIME WE MET

30/12/2006 BOLTON WANDERERS 3 (Faye, Campo, Anelka) PORTSMOUTH 2 (Taylor, Cole)

BOLTON: Jussi Jaaskelainen, Nicky Hunt, Abdoulaye Meite, Abdoulaye Faye, Tal Ben-Haim, Kevin Nolan, Ivan Campo, Gary Speed, El-Hadji Diouf (Henrik Pedersen), Kevin Davies, Nicolas Anelka

Subs Not Used: Ricardo Gardner, Ricardo Vaz-Te, Idan Tal, Ian Walker

POMPEY: David James, Glen Johnson, Linvoy Primus (Andy O'Brien), Sol Campbell, Noe Pamarot (Benjani Mwaruwari), Gary O'Neil (David Thompson), Sean Davis, Niko Krancjar, Manuel Fernandes, Matt Taylor, Andy Cole

Subs Not Used: Richard Hughes, Jamie Ashdown

PLAYED FOR BOTH:

Brian Bromley, John Gregory, Trevor Hebbard, Russell Hoult, Andy O'Brien, Paul Ritchie, David Thompson

DID YOU KNOW?

Bolton's last meeting against Portsmouth was both teams last game of 2006 and unfortunately it kick started a bad league run for the Wanderers where by they picked up just four wins for the rest of the 2006-2007 season.

David Thompson and Andy O'Brien where part of the Pompey side the last time these two teams met. Within a month Thompson had transferred to the Reebok Stadium ranks and currently O'Brien is Bolton's latest capture.

John Gregory had an ill fated spell as manager of Pompey in the early 1990's.