Bolton Wanderers play host to Brentford on Monday evening having won just one game all season, but manager Neil Lennon may take a small bit of confidence from drawing three of their last five matches.
As far as Brentford are concerned, they are yet to announce their new head coach ahead of the fixture, but regardless of who is placed in charge, they travel to the North-West as one of the form teams in the Championship.
Bolton Wanderers
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With the club in severe financial difficultly and without a league win in 11 matches, Bolton boss Lennon finds himself in a tough position ahead of the upcoming winter months.
Lennon was also restricted in his attempts to bring in any new players ahead of the loan deadline, saying that there were no funds available, but if the former Celtic chief were to take anything from their current position, he could look at the fact that Wanderers remain just four points from safety.
After winning just one match all season, their plight in the Championship could be a whole lot worse, and it may only take one victory to start to move their campaign in the right direction.
If that is to materialise, though, they must find a solution to their lack of goals. The Trotters have not scored from open play for 418 minutes, with their consolation effort in last week's 2-1 defeat to Reading coming from the penalty spot.
As far as the defence goes, it is difficult to have many complaints given that just eight goals have been conceded in seven outings. That said, when they are not posing any threat in attack, the opposition can afford to take a professional approach to registering three points, and until Bolton show a clinical touch in the final third, they are not going to concern the majority of teams in the second tier.
Recent form: LDDLDL
Brentford
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After witnessing his side defeat Nottingham Forest last weekend, interim head coach Lee Carsley said that the match would be his last in temporary charge of the Bees, but as it stands, the London club are yet to name his replacement.
While Carsley and other members of the backroom staff continue to coach the first team, there has been no indication whether they will remain in the dugout for an extra fixture, but if that turns out to be the case, there are unlikely to be any complaints from the club's supporters.
Since accepting a role that he did not want to fill on a full-term basis, Carsley has guided Brentford to five wins and a draw from nine games, a run of results which has helped the team into 11th position in the Championship table.
Brentford are still four points away from breaking into the playoffs, a position they achieved last season, but despite the continued uncertainty surrounding the head coach position, there is a feeling that the club are very much on the up after deciding to part ways with Marinus Dijkhuizen in September.
A 2-1 win over Forest was recorded despite playing the final 19 minutes with 10 men, and it is that spirit that has made Brentford one of the dark horses of the division once again, although they cannot afford to lose any of their recent momentum against their beleaguered opponents.
Recent form: WWWLDW
Team News
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Lennon said at his pre-match press conference that defender Dean Moxey has returned to training, but the Northern Irishman did not give a clear indication of whether the former Crystal Palace full-back will be involved on Monday night.
Zach Clough and Wellington Silva remain absent until the middle of December.
Brentford will be without defender Harlee Dean after his sending-off against Forest, meaning that Jack O'Connell could be drafted into the side.
Philipp Hofmann may also get the nod in attack after coming off the substitutes' bench to score a last-minute winner.
Bolton Wanderers possible starting lineup:
Amos, Vela, Gouano, Wheater, Casado, Feeney, Spearing, Danns, Pratley, Davies, Ameobi
Brentford possible starting lineup:
Button, Yennaris, O'Connell, Tarkowski, Bidwell, Woods, Diagouraga, McCormack, Judge, Hoffmann, Swift
Head To Head
Monday's encounter will represent the 39th time that the two teams have met, with Brentford edging the head-to-head record with 15 wins to 14, but there have been just two matches since 1995.
They both came last season, with Bolton winning their home fixture 3-1 thanks to second-half goals from Neil Danns, Mark Davies and Craig Davies.
The game at Griffin Park ended in a 2-2 draw, with Mark Davies once again getting on the scoresheet to earn his side a point.
We say: Bolton Wanderers 1-2 Brentford
It is hard to predict anything other than a low-scoring affair based on Bolton's last seven results, but we are backing more of the same from Brentford, who we think will win their sixth match in eight attempts.
Darren Plant
