After laying the foundations for an impressive league run, Bolton Wanderers have seen their form take a sharp dip since the beginning of December, having now lost their last five games in all competitions.
Following consecutive losses to Fleetwood Town, Accrington Stanley and Rotherham United, Ian Evatt’s side suffered a particularly concerning 1-0 defeat at the hands of fourth-tier Hartlepool United in cup action, and they were unable to bounce back last time out.
The Lancashire outfit played host to promotion-chasing Wycombe Wanderers, and goals from Brandon Hanlan and Jack Grimmer either side of the interval ensured the hosts fell to a fourth straight League One defeat.
The Trotters’ poor run of form has seen them drop to 18th spot, and, now sitting just three points above the drop zone, they are tasked with correcting their form and putting more distance between themselves and the bottom four.
That will certainly be no easy task though, as Ipswich Town arrive with renewed confidence.
After Paul Cook’s struggles to get the best out of the Suffolk outfit in the first half of the campaign, Ipswich hired Kieran McKenna as the new boss at Portman
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Road, and he kicked off his tenure with a hard-fought 1-0 home win over third-placed Wycombe thanks to James Norwood’s finish.
Norwood again opened the scoring last time out in their trip to Gillingham, before Wes Burns and Macauley Bonne stretched their lead to three goals inside the first 30 minutes and Conor Chaplin capped off a strong team showing by converting a late penalty to seal a 4-0 win.
Having now climbed to 10th spot in England’s third tier, the Tractor Boys will certainly have their sights set on pushing for the playoff spots, and their claim will be improved if McKenna’s men can make it three wins on the bounce on Saturday
