Hartlepool United vs Bolton Wanderers Match Analysis and Prediction

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The EFL Trophy will see two teams return to action in their third round on Tuesday when Hartlepool United will be welcoming Bolton Wanderers at the Victoria Park.

The hosts returned to action with a goalless draw in their League Two fixture on New Year’s Day, while the visitors were narrowly defeated by Rotherham United.

After Hartlepool earned a promotion from the National League last season, it could rarely be predicted that they would be sitting in a strong 15th position at the halfway stage of the season.

With nine points now being between them and Scunthorpe United in the drop zone, there is little pressure on Graeme Lee’s side, and as a result their full focus can now turn to their cup match on Tuesday.

Graeme Lee’s first match on the reigns at Hartlepool was was the 3-0 victory at League One giants Sheffield Wednesday back at the beginning of December, and with two more victories and just one defeat following his next five games, confidence will be high in the League Two side’s camp ahead of their Tuesday’s tie.

Bolton’s long-awaited return to action ended in a disappointment onSaturday, as Ian Evatt’s side fell 2-1 to League One leaders Rotherham.

Eoin Doyle equalised for Bolton just before half time, but despite matching their high-flying opponrnts for much of the game, they came to a loss at the end of the match.

That was their first game in three weeks, after their previous three matches Wycombe Wanderers, Morecambe and Burton Albion had all been postponed due to Covid-19 issues.

However, despite the previous encounters being played weeks before, defeat at the New York Stadium was Bolton’s third in a row.

Three successive defeats leave Bolton sitting 16th, with just four points between them and a potential immediate return to the fourth division.

Hartlepool United vs Bolton Wanderers head to head

The two teams have not previously met in any competition and this is going to be their first encounter ever.

Hartlepool United latest home form

Hartlepool have most recently been on a good form at home, as they have not lost in their last three matches. Their last home defeat came on November 20 when they lost 3-1 to Forest Green Rovers. In their last five matches, they have won one, drawn two and lost two.

Hartlepool United 1-2 Newport County 12/11/21

Hartlepool United 1-3 Forest Green Rovers 20/11/21

Hartlepool United 2-1 Rochdale 08/12/21

Hartlepool United 0-0 Scunthorpe United 11/12/21

Hartlepool United 0-0 Oldham Athletic 01/01/22

Hartlepool United latest away form

Hartlepool have recently defeated Sheffield Wednesday 3-0 in the EFL Trophy and Lincoln City 1-0 in the FA Cup. However, they have been on a poor run of form on they road in the league, as they have lost in all their last four league away matches dating to October 30.

Swindon Town 3-1 Hartlepool United 23/11/21

Port Vale 2-0 Hartlepool United 27/11/21

Sheffield Wednesday 0-3 Hartlepool United 01/12/21

Lincoln City 0-1 Hartlepool United 04/12/21

Mansfield Town 3-2 Hartlepool United 26/12/21

Bolton Wandererd latest home form

Bolton have been on a good run of form at home, as they have not lost in any of their last six matches. In their last game at home, they defeated Fleetwood Town 1-0 in the EFL Trophy. In their last five matches at home, they have won three and drawn two.

Bolton Wanderers 2-2 Stockport County 07/11/21

Bolton Wanderers 2-0 Crewe Alexandra 12/11/21

Bolton Wanderers 3-0 Doncaster Rovers 23/11/21

Bolton Wanderers 2-2 Cheltenham Town 27/11/21

Bolton Wanderers 1-0 Fleetwood Town 30/11/21

Bolton Wanderers latest away form

Bolton have recently been on a poor run of form away from home, as they have lost in all of their last five matches on the road. That includes a 5-3 loss to Stockport County in the FA Cup. Their last away victory came on November 2 when they defeated Rochdale 3-0.

Stockport County (E)5-3 Bolton Wanderers 17/11/21

Wycombe Wanderers 1-0 Bolton Wanderers 20/11/21

Fleetwood Town 3-0 Bolton Wanderers 07/12/21

Accrington Stanley 1-0 Bolton Wanderers 11/12/21

Rotherham United 2-1 Bolton Wanderers 01/01/22

Hartlepool United news

Hartlepool’s Tyler Burey continues to work his way back to full fitness and made his first start in four months at the weekend, and is likely to feature again.

Jamie Sterry overcame an illness to start and contribute an excellent performance against Oldham after being substituted off in their previous fixture.

Bolton Wanderers news

Bolton are likely to hand a debut to their new acquisition Dion Charles on Tuesday, while midfielder Kieran Lee remains unavailable as he suffers from Covid-19 effects.

Jordan Williams also missed out from the loss at Rotherham due to isolation, but he will be in contention to feature on Tuesday.

Prediction and Odds

Hartlepool are heading into this match on a good form, having lost just one of their last six matches in all competitions.

Bolton have recently performed poorly on their outings, but could be aiming to overturn that record, and we could see the game likely ending a low scoring draw.

Odds: 1 2.45 X 3.05 2 2.21